Mystic Wings
by Sapphirefly
Summary: Sequel to 'Dragon's Moon'. 'Mystic Wings' follows Hitomi into the next phase of her life as she turns eighteen. Van has a surprise for her and it's one she could never have expected. Will she want to kiss him or kill him? AU VH.
1. Prologue The Crime

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I really like writing this story.

Author's Notes: This is the sequel for 'Dragon's Moon'. You can try reading this as a stand alone if you'd like, but I wouldn't really recommend it. I wanted to do a summery of what happened in the first story so people could pick up reading here if they wanted to, but honestly - a lot - happens in the first story.

Anyway, hope everyone enjoys this. It was a blast to write.

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**Mystic Wings**

**Prologue**

**The Crime**

Van stood on the pavement outside the apartment complex where Hitomi's parents lived. His leg was so itchy under his bandages and walking cast he was ready to chew his own leg off, but that wasn't the only thing inducing his irritability. He was about to do something illegal, and his leg was hurt. So, if he had to make a sudden disappearance, he was going to be totally screwed. He clenched his teeth and considered how desperate he was to accomplish his task.

"Pretty desperate," he thought to himself before he decided that if it got bad, he'd have to lie. He'd have to lie … a lot. Not that he was uncomfortable telling lies, but he wasn't really prepared with a plausible story. He'd have to think on his feet, and now was really his last chance. He couldn't go away to prepare more, and nor could he ask a more healthy person to do this. He had considered asking Hitomi outright if she'd do it, but he couldn't do that. If she walked into her parent's apartment they'd go berserk with happiness just to see her, and then his plan would be shot. Even if they weren't home, as now, he didn't think he would be able to convince her to just get the goods and take off. She'd be too excited to be home, wouldn't she?

This was his last chance.

After Van met with the Abaharaki one of his less noisy followers, a boy named Jak, had come up to him and told him some information he thought was pressing. He said that Hitomi's parents were moving in two weeks, and he hadn't been able to find out where to.

Van was startled, but he understood why her parents might want to clear out. Well, they could, but Van couldn't let them go without getting something from them – Hitomi's birth certificate. She'd be eighteen in less than a week now, and he needed proof of it.

So he straightened his baseball cap and put on his yellow sunglasses and headed for the front doors, at the exact same time as a pretty woman who seemed to be in her early thirties. There wasn't a lot of security, only the regular buzz numbers, but he let her see him limping and he was carrying a bag of groceries in his arms. She unlocked the door with her keys and held the door open wide for Van. He smiled at her and thanked her earnestly. After all, he had waited for almost two hours for someone who lived in her building. He was honestly happy to see her; it had been getting very hot out in the summer heat.

Then he made his way up to Hitomi's parents' apartment. He wasn't good at picking locks, as it was not exactly his forte, but he didn't plan on picking it. He had no intention of doing this the slow proper way. He was in too big of a hurry. Besides, it had been the main front doors that had presented a challenge, and now he was past that.

He put the groceries on the floor and extended his hand to the wooden door, being totally prepared to zap it to oblivion, when suddenly, the door opened.

Van's eyes opened wide. He was totally unprepared to come face to face with Hitomi's father. He had his keys in hand and was obviously on his way out. He must have come back home while Van was waiting at the front door. _Oh crap!_

"I think you've got the wrong apartment Sonny," her dad said stepping out into the hallway and locking the door behind him.

Van moved out of the way for him, and pulled his baseball cap further down on his face.

Then Hitomi's father turned on him and abruptly asked, "You're not one of Marlene's friends, are you?"

"I think I got off on the wrong floor," Van said, picking up his groceries and limping away with his head down. He knew he looked totally unsuspicious, because he looked pathetic. The bag of groceries helped with that.

Van waited by the elevator with Mr. Kanzaki and they got on the lift together. Van pressed the button for the second floor and Hitomi's father had chose the basement/parking lot level. It didn't matter which one.

The doors closed and Van looked at Mr. Kanzaki's shoes. He hated himself more by the minute. To think that he was about to break into their apartment, but it couldn't be helped, so he just focused on the brown leather of his shoes. He wondered for the millionth time why Hitomi couldn't have been kidnapped with her birth certificate on her.

Finally the elevator opened and Van stepped out. The lift had to go down to the basement before he could try their door again, so he waited.

It felt like forever before he could get up to try their door again, but he finally got there and sat the bag of groceries beside the door again. He put his hand out and blew a hole about ten centimeters across clean through the dwood. He didn't have time to wait for it to cool, so he wrapped his arm in the plaid shirt he had tied around his waist (intended for this very purpose) and reached in to unlock the dead-bolt. It came open easily, and no security system was activated.

There wasn't much smoke, but he knew he had to hurry; someone might come down the hallway, or the fire alarm might go off. He made his way into Hitomi's room as quickly as possible, which wasn't fast. He was cursing himself up and down that he was trying to do this in his current condition. He was such an idiot.

They weren't due to leave for another few days (the two weeks Jak mentioned were almost gone), so Van was hoping that Hitomi's room wasn't packed into boxes yet. He flung the door open and saw that someone had started packing her up, but hadn't finished yet. Van scanned the room and saw that Hitomi's purse was still lying on the top of her dresser. He unzipped it and found her documents and cards. Luckily, her birth certificate was there. It was wallet sized and in a little white cardholder. He flipped through her other documents, and decided to take her drivers license as well. When he was sure he'd gotten everything important he turned to leave, happy that it had been easy.

"Hello?" Van suddenly heard someone yell from the front door.

_Son of a … _Hitomi's father had come back, seen the burning door, and knew there was a break in. Van was clenching his teeth and quickly stuffed his prize into the pocket of his jeans. What was he going to do? Hitomi's parents lived on the third floor. He couldn't make it out the window. On a normal day, he would have climbed out the window, but with his leg? He was as good as caught!

Well, he'd planned to lie, so he might as well get ready to. Van looked around the room frantically for something that looked sentimental and looked like it might be something important to her. Something she wouldn't be able to live without, but what? Her father's footfalls were coming towards the bedroom.

Van quickly snatched up a framed picture of Hitomi and Millerna together and put it behind his back in an effort to hide it.

"I know you're in here!" her father's voice boomed again.

Van felt a trickle of sweat creep down the back of his neck, and prepared himself. He was going to lie his head off, or die trying, to one of the few people a young man should never lie to – his girlfriend's father.

The door burst open, and Van stood there looking stupid as Mr. Kanzaki burst into the room holding a golf club poised in one hand and a cordless phone in the other.

Van flinched.

Mr. Kanzaki immediately recognized Van and asked him in a steady voice. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't call the police and have you arrested."

"… I know where Hitomi is," Van said, pretending to hesitate. "… Or I _will_ know where she is."

"What do you mean?" Mr. Kanzaki asked, lowering the golf club.

"It's a long story," Van said, hobbling over to the door and moving to walk right by Hitomi's father.

"Wait, what do you have?" he asked, grabbing Van's arm.

Van reluctantly showed him the picture of Hitomi and Millerna together.

"That's what you broke in here to get. Why?" Hitomi's father asked, looking around him nervously and then at Van. "Who are you to Hitomi?"

Well, if there was one thing he shouldn't lie about, it was his feelings for Hitomi. Her father wouldn't believe him benevolent if he didn't. So, even though he planned to make up a story about how Hitomi wanted the photo, he ended up going with a different story. "I'm in love with her," he said quietly. "And she was kidnapped…" Van said desperately, realizing that her father knew perfectly well that she was kidnapped. He had seen them do it.

"Tell me what you know," Mr. Kanzaki pressed, his face becoming red with heat. He stood squarely in Van's path. Van couldn't go anywhere.

"Can I tell you the whole story?" Van asked.

"You'd better," he said, giving Van an 'I'm gonna kill you if you don't spill your guts this instant' look.

Van quickly went into a speech he hoped didn't sound too planned. He wasn't as good at this as Allen. Allen could B.S. his way through anything. "Hitomi and I started dating before everything happened with Millerna and before she was kidnapped. I'm the reason she was kidnapped," Van said despondently.

"Go on," Mr. Kanzaki urged.

"My brother got into some trouble with these drug dealers, and when he couldn't pay them, of course they wanted a piece of him to teach him that he couldn't screw around with their kind. I wouldn't let them have him of course, so their grudge transferred from my brother to me. They couldn't get at me, so they decided to take what they could - my girlfriend – Hitomi. So, they came and took her."

"Didn't you go after her?"

"Yeah, I did," Van said. "But it wasn't any use. I fell chasing one of them and dislocated by knee," Van lied. He hoped Mr. Kanzaki didn't ask him to lift his pant leg. He was wearing the right cast for a dislocated knee (at least he thought he was), but he was shot in the meaty part of his calf. Van hoped frantically that he wouldn't ask him.

"Why didn't you call the police?" Mr. Kanzaki asked, looking like the blood vessel in his forehead was about to burst.

Van had a rough time turning his attention away from the vessel. It looked like it would pop, but Van managed to control himself and continue. "I can't call the police. If I call the police my brother is a dead man. But I'm getting Hitomi back in five weeks," Van said – lying again.

"Why in five weeks?"

"They said that I could have her back in five weeks," Van said trying to put off saying what he knew her father would be loath to hear. "They said she's safe until then and I have to believe them, because there's nothing else I can do."

"Why in five weeks?" he repeated, as Van knew he would.

"… That's when my cast is being down-graded."

"And what's special about that?"

"… It's just …" Van said, stalling for as long as he could.

"What!" Hitomi's father demanded, grabbing onto both of Van's arms and squeezing them.

"They're going to break both my knees," Van admitted in a choked yelp – still lying. "If I let them break my knees, they'll let her go! And they'll give my brother more time to pay his debt."

"That's the STUPIDEST thing I've ever heard!" he choked. "They probably won't give her to you anyway, even if you allow that. Don't be a fool."

"I'm not being a fool. I shouldn't have told you. But I want you to come pick her up," Van said, trying his best to look his part.

"I'm calling the police. You're going to tell them what you just told me." Without any delay, he started dialing. No doubt the man had the police phone line programmed in his quick dials on that phone.

Van snatched it out of his hand and turned it off. "Didn't you hear me? I said that my brother will be dead if we call the police. We can't do that. You'll just have to wait for me to settle this. Like I said, you can pick her up from an address in the country as soon as we get her back."

"What address?"

"I'll phone you with the address the night before I go to get her. You'd better not involve the bloody cops, or we'll never get her back and my brother will die, and possibly me too. I can handle broken bones, but if you do one thing to compromise my chances of getting Hitomi back, I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" Van shouted, feeling that he was playing his part well. Besides, he had been planning to do this anyway. Now that he had met her father in person, he might as well get it out of the way. He would arrange for her father to come pick her up the day he was to go to The Voltage Room. That was his plan.

"You can't be a very good person," he said slowly, looking at Van carefully, and calming down visibly. "Breaking into people's homes."

"I just wanted a picture of Hitomi, and I heard you were moving," Van said slowly.

"How old are you Boy?"

"Nineteen," Van lied again.

"And you're already into trouble up to your neck?"

"Yes," Van admitted meekly. At least that part was true. He was always into trouble up to his neck.

"You can't be a very good boy for my daughter," he went on. "But if you can get Hitomi back, I'll be eternally grateful."

"I'll get her back," Van said reassuringly, "Even if they break every bone in my body."

Both of them were welling up with emotion, and Mr. Kanzaki's artery was starting to look big again. Van had to get out of there. "Can I pay you for the door?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah," her dad said.

"Tell me how much it cost when I call with the address then."

"I'll do that," he said, nodding.

Van couldn't believe it when he made it back out to the street. Why had her father bought that story? It wasn't farfetched, as least Van didn't think it was farfetched because of all this dealings with members of the Abaharaki. Lots of them had stories like that, but it might seem extraordinary to an outsider. Van walked down the block to where Eries was parked thinking about it.

There was no way Hitomi's father wasn't going to call the police as soon as Van was gone, but Van didn't care. He'd make sure his aunt knew what to do when Mr. Kanzaki came to pick Hitomi up.

Besides, even though his plan wasn't perfect, he had every intention of going through with it. He felt like he had no choice, and if things were going to be this way then there was only one thing he could do with these weeks before he met with Folken.

"Did you get what you were looking for?" Eries asked, as he clamored into the passenger side seat.

"Yup," he said, straightening his leg to make himself as comfortable as possible.

"Have you been lying?" she asked coyly, looking over her shoulder to pull out onto the street.

"How can you tell?"

"Your ears are red," she said with a giggle.

Van didn't want to answer her. He was hot, thirsty, his leg was still itchy and he was not in the mood to play at being close friends with Eries. There was simply no one else able to drive him that day. It was pathetic that he had to be chauffeured to go commit a crime, but at least he was successful.

Hitomi's birth certificate! He resisted the urge to pull it out of his pocket and have a look at it. He remembered how much he had wanted it. Now that he had it, the elation that filled his heart was indescribable. Van felt the wind on his face, and for that moment, forgot that he was in a completely wretched mood. How could he be in a wretched mood? He had got what he wanted, and he and Hitomi were going on their 'vacation' the day after next.

He was going to take her to a cabin in the woods. It was only a short drive from a lake and he had booked it for an entire month. It was a month he was going to use to teach her how to use her elemental abilities.

Soon his plan would be in motion. It was a plan that would not only fulfill his most secret aspirations for life as well as break his heart. Yet, even though he knew what it would do to him, he was determined to carry it out. There was really nothing else he could do. He might be selfish, and drastic, and willful, but if he didn't take this one chance, then it might never come again. He'd have to risk it all.

"Say, Eries," he said suddenly. "There's one more place I want you to take me."

"Oh?"

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Author's Notes: Okay, since this is the prologue it's a little different than the rest of the chapters are going to be. This is the only chapter that will be from Van's perspective. The rest of the story will be like 'Dragon's Moon' and be entirely from Hitomi's point of view. 

Thanks again to Kat for beta reading. And thank you all for reading and reviewing. I LOVE YOU GUYS!


	2. The 'Vacation' Begins

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I wrote this story.

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**Chapter One**

**The 'Vacation' Begins**

Hitomi sat behind the wheel of Van's convertible. She was wearing a pair of his sunglasses and paying what attention she could spare to the road ahead of her. Van was sitting in the seat beside her. He had pushed it all the way back to make room for his cast (his two crutches were lying across the back seat), and was reading a magazine. Hitomi wanted to look at him, but she managed to keep her eyes on the road instead of on him. But make no mistake; it was hard.

She was trying to think of things calmly and rationally as they drove. So, they were going on their holiday after all. Eries and Aunt Flo were stunned when Van told them that was what he planned to do as soon as things settled down a little. He was going to go on a vacation with Hitomi for the rest of the time he had before he had to show up at The Voltage Room. He assured them that they would be able to contact him on his cell phone regarding his insurance and the fire that had burned down his home. Hitomi thought she saw his Aunt take him aside to talk to him about the sensibility of running around with Hitomi. Van shrugged her off and told her quite frankly that he knew what he was doing, and everything would be fine.

Eries looked like something was brewing in her head regarding the two of them, but she didn't say anything to either of them. She seemed too ladylike to talk to either of them about the prudence of their running off together. Hitomi wondered if she suspected the two of them having a relationship after all, but Eries never said anything.

Hitomi hardly saw Van before it was time for them to leave. He had a lot to take care of with the Abaharaki temporarily disbanding, his house burning down, taking care of his injury, and arranging for their trip. She tried to help him, but he wouldn't let her, saying that he wanted to spoil her by giving her a chance to relax and figure out what she wanted out of their relationship.

She scoffed at this and said to him haughtily, "I thought we were through all this. You and me, we're in this together. I don't need any time!"

"Oh yes you do," he said, trying to look older and wiser than her. "And really I'm not going to give you much. You'd better not waste these few days."

Hitomi was a little miffed at his attitude, but decided not to sweat it. Some people work better with fewer cooks in the kitchen. She thought she'd just let him have his way. He might be able to accomplish more if she stayed out of it. Plus, she knew she'd have him all to herself when they went on their vacation.

It was a big secret that she had elemental abilities, so absolutely no one besides the two of them even knew where they were going. Van didn't want to risk half a dozen members of the Abaharaki spying on him. He left his cell phone number with Aunt Flo and told her not to call him unless it was an emergency. That was it. That was all they did before they left.

Now she sat in the driver's seat of his car, listening to a perfect blend of synth-pop and rock. She had a fruit smoothie in her cup holder, and occasionally Van would read her something interesting from the magazine he was reading. He was such good company!

They stopped once for lunch as it was only a four-hour drive. The place they were going wasn't so far away, but closer to the mountains than the city, in a nice woodsy area.

Finally, when everything was arranged and Van had picked up the keys, they pulled up to a little log cabin. Hitomi got out and helped Van out of the car and up the steps. The inside was dry walled and painted, so it looked just like every other house. There was a bathroom, Van told her, and she saw the fireplace and the neat little kitchen. Suddenly, she looked at Van and felt like they were playing house like a pair of children who didn't know any better.

Even though Hitomi had been mellow about going out to the middle of nowhere with only Van in theory, in practice it was overwhelming. When she saw him standing all alone in the empty living room explaining accommodations, Hitomi realized that they hadn't spent much time alone together recently. Suddenly, she was terrified that the cabin only had one bedroom. What would she do if that were the case? Eventually, Van led her into the back and showed her the master bedroom. He said there was another bedroom off to the side that he would be using.

"Oh," she said, trying to sound like she wasn't relieved. Maybe he had been right about giving her time to think things over. It was an awful lot for a person to adjust to. After all she really hadn't had much experience with men, and had devoted the better part of her dating years to chasing Dilandau, who didn't care for her at all. This was all very new to her, and the butterflies in her stomach told her she wasn't coping as well as she would have liked.

Van looked at her curiously. "I'm not going to force myself on you Hitomi. You don't need to worry about that."

"I know you wouldn't," she said quietly. "You're not that kind of guy."

"So, rest easy," he said, taking her hands in his. "Lighten up. It's just like the way it was back at my house for those months that we lived under the same roof, and it's just like these couple weeks that we spent at my aunt's. Nothing has changed."

"Okay," she said. "Van, you've never …"

"Never what?"

"... Slept with anyone, have you?" she asked, nearly choking. However, even though she was uncomfortable, she thought it was important to know whether or not he had any experience with this sort of thing and thus … expectations. He said he wouldn't pressure her, and she believed him, but how much time was reasonable for him to wait for her? And … Eries said he was only a flirt. Hitomi couldn't help being a little worried that this was really just some elaborate scheme to get her into bed. It was like she was waking up at three o'clock in the morning with all these fears that seemed ridiculous in the daylight. So now she was alone with him looking at the curve of his jaw, whereas before she had been able to control herself. Back at Van's aunt's home there had always been the chance of discovery, so they had only flirted and kissed occasionally … but now they were alone.

"Almost did once," he said casually. "She turned me down."

"Really? Who?" she asked, trying to make it sound like whatever the answer was that it was normal.

"It was you Hitomi. You can't tell me you don't remember. It was only two weeks ago. You remember that night after I took you to the club, right?"

"Yeah," Hitomi said, the evening coming into focus for her. "That's not exactly what I meant. I meant have you ever …"

"I know what you meant," Van said, interrupting her. "And I think it's very mature of you to ask, considering everything, but I'll have to disappoint you and stall answering that question."

"But we're …"

"I know what we are Hitomi. Believe me; I know exactly what we are. I didn't say I wouldn't answer. I will, just not this second, okay? We still need to haul in all our luggage and groceries, and get settled. I was also hoping that we could get started on why we came out here in the first place – I'm really excited to teach you everything I know Hitomi. I don't know a lot. There was no one to teach me, and I just had to figure things out on my own, but I want to share it with you. I've had to wait so long. And I had to wait until you realized you had the ability. That was such a long wait."

"Well, let's get moving then," Hitomi said, heading for the door.

Hitomi unloaded the luggage and groceries while Van started peeling potatoes for their dinner. He said that since she had to do all the grunt labour, he might as well do his share and make the meal.

He stood at the range cooking onions and potatoes while Hitomi sat on a stool near him reading one of the articles he had started in the car. When Hitomi reminded herself that he wasn't really going to pressure her to accelerate their relationship she felt comfortable enough to laugh over some of the things in the magazine, but nothing totally quieted the odd fluttering in her stomach. Not that it mattered what she told herself. She felt like something bad was going to happen, and that she had definitely made a mistake coming out here, even though she tried to brush off the feeling with her laughter. She didn't know what would make her feel better.

After the meal of potatoes, onions, and ham, she felt absolutely sick. Van asked her if she wanted to head outside for their first lesson, but Hitomi felt like if she took his hand she'd die. Her stomach was so bent out of shape; she was worried she might throw up.

"Come on," he said lightly. "There's plenty of light left. The sun won't set until eleven."

"I don't feel very well Van," she said, finally answering him, and holding her head in her hands. "Would you mind if I drove into town and got myself some Pepto-Bismol at the pharmacy? I bet they're still open."

"Of course not," he said, genuine concern filling his eyes. "I'd drive you if I could, but … Can I come with you then?"

"I don't want you to be tired," she said, getting his car keys and heading for the door. "I won't be gone very long anyway. Do you want me to get you anything while I'm out?"

"No," he said, hobbling with her to the door. "Hitomi, are you sure you're all right to go by yourself?"

"I'm perfectly fine," she said, pausing at the door. "I'll be right back, okay?"

As Hitomi drove away she saw Van sitting in the front window watching her pull out. What must he think of her? Getting an upset stomach, and over what?

When she got back, it was almost nine o'clock. She'd been longer than she thought, but she stood in front of the snacks for almost a half an hour wondering if she ought to pick up something for Van anyway. Then there had been a lineup at the teller, and after that she had simply driven around the little town in laps, trying to figure out why she felt so sick. She hadn't been able to understand it.

When she finally went in, she found Van lying on the couch with his eyes closed. "I wondered if you were coming back." Hitomi couldn't figure out if his tone was joking or cynical.

"I'm sorry I took so long," she said uneasily. "I brought you something," she handed him a giant Toblerone chocolate bar and meddled uneasily with the keys in her hands.

"You want to tell me what's going on?" he asked, setting her present on the floor.

"Nothing," she lied. Yet, she didn't feel like she was lying. Hitomi hadn't been able to identify what was bothering her. Did she doubt him or herself, or something else all together?

"You're a very sweet girl Hitomi, and lying doesn't come to you easily. Are you _that_ uncomfortable staying here with me?"

"I'm a little uncomfortable," she admitted, "But I don't think it's you."

"Hitomi," he said seriously to her with his sherry-brown eyes glinting. "Don't think I expect you to adjust to this that quickly. You're seventeen years old. How could you possibly find yourself alone in a cabin with a strange man easy to accept?"

"You are NOT a strange man," she quickly defended him.

"Whatever. The point still stands that you're acting like you're afraid of me. I really don't want to make you feel that way, but if you do, we can go back to Aunt Flo's tonight if you want to."

"No! Van, I don't want that!" she said urgently.

"Is it because of my leg? Do I seem a lot less like Prince Charming because of it?"

"No," she said miserably, sitting down beside him.

"Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable?" he persisted.

"No, Van. I can tell that you're doing everything to try to make me feel better. I can't explain what the problem is. I feel sick. I feel like something terrible is going to happen."

He looked at her carefully. "I don't repulse you?"

Hitomi examined him from where she was sitting. How could she possibly have given him the idea that she might have felt that way? He was beautiful. More beautiful than anything else she'd ever seen. His hair was falling in long stands into his eyes and he'd propped himself up on both his elbows to look at her more carefully. And even without the pull of his dark good looks, there was something about the way he was looking at her, something about the way he obviously cared for her that drew her to him. He was very attractive to her then, too attractive … so attractive that she thought she was going to lose her head completely and do something stupid.

_That _was it! That was why she was freaking out. She hadn't imagined that she could feel so intensely for someone else. She had never felt this way about Dilandau, and her lack of experience was scaring her to death. That wasn't the only thing either, she knew. Van wanted her back. It was easy to tell that his feelings were as strong as hers – maybe stronger. He was keeping himself under tight control, and it was harder for him than it had been, because now he _knew _how she felt.

"It's just …" Hitomi started out slowly, trying to think of a way to describe what she was just figuring out. "I'm in love with you."

He smiled, and the tortured expression disappeared. Instead he looked stunned. "Are you sure? I don't want to push you."

"Because I'm young and you're still not a cradle robber?" she asked casually. She paused for just a second and then pursued their serious discussion. "I never told you exactly how I was feeling."

"I know."

"I didn't even know how to say it. I'm sorry I couldn't be more forthcoming. Thanks for taking things slowly, but … I want to kiss you," she said. She was trying to convince herself that if she kissed him, it would calm her shaking nerves. Their lips weren't far apart; she wouldn't have to go far.

"Hitomi," he said quietly.

"Yeah," she said wetting her lower lip.

"As much as I'd love to kiss you right now, and keep on kissing you until dawn, I'm not going to."

"Why?" she asked, suddenly leaning back, widening the distance between them.

"You're going to be mad at me, but I don't think you're ready for that yet." He waited to hear her reaction.

She stared, but somewhere deep in her heart, she felt relieved.

"Now's not a good time," he said, looking away from her. "And it's not because I think you're a child."

"Then why don't you think I'm ready?" she asked, not upset, but confused, and very interested in what he had to say.

"Well, I'm not risking any 'close calls'."

"What do you mean by that?"

He sighed heavily. "Okay Hitomi, I'm going to be really honest with you and then I'm going to throw you out the door."

"Throw me out the door?"

"The sun's setting, and the moon is already out. You can see it clearly over the southwestern ridge. While you were gone, I made up a backpack for you. The only thing that's missing from it is a Popsicle. Do you think you could eat a Popsicle?"

She felt her stomach with her hand. It felt perfectly fine now for some reason, but she didn't want to admit that she was better once the pressure was off. It sounded too childish to her. "I don't suppose it would do any harm," she said.

"Good." He got up from the couch and got her a blue one from the freezer. Then he walked over to the front door and lifted a beige backpack off the ground and put it on her shoulders. "Listen up," he said to her while he unwrapped her Popsicle for her. "In that pack is everything you need to have a good experience out here. Go out the door and walk wherever you feel like going. When you come to a good spot, open the backpack and use the stuff inside. There's a bottle of water in there too. Listen to your heart, the crickets, the sound of the wind, and the voice of your spirit. Think about me and what you want. Think about your ability and what you think you can do with it. When you've figured out the answers to those two questions, come back. This is a journey of self-discovery, and hopefully it will help you clear your mind and figure out a course to follow. You're looking at me funny," he observed.

"I didn't mean to," she said, still giving him her cutest puzzled expression. "I just didn't picture you suggesting this sort of thing, or talking to me like this."

"Well, I've still got some tricks up my sleeve, I assure you," Van said confidently. "Do you feel up to it?"

She nodded, wondering wildly what he had put in the backpack.

"I'll leave the lights to the cabin on for you," he said, opening the front door. "Don't get lost."

"Like I would," she scoffed.

"No seriously, don't get lost. There's a cell phone in there for you to call me on if you _do_ get lost, but don't get lost in the first place. If I'm in bed by the time you come back, don't come in my bedroom, but just bang on the door until I answer you, okay? I want to know that you made it back here safely."

"Why shouldn't I come in?" she asked. They had always gone into each other's bedrooms when they needed to.

"Because," he said getting wicked gleams in his eyes with sparks like a falling star. "If you come in, I won't let you leave again."

With that he scooted her out the door and shut it behind her.

Hitomi stood on the front porch. Her cheeks were blazing. _Why had he said that?_

Even so, she stepped into the grass and decided to head in the direction of the moon. He said southwest. There it was hanging pale in the light gold evening sky. She put the Popsicle in her mouth and started walking. Even though the sun was no longer at it's peak, it was still hot out and the cold blue flavoured ice felt great after she had been walking a minute.

Hitomi soon found herself walking on a lonely country road, with little buttercups and cattails blooming in the irrigation ditches. Half of this place was forest and the other half was plains, but still in the distance were the majestic mountain ridges Van had told her about.

She thought about the city and the places downtown that she used to frequent. This was so different. No wonder she hadn't been able to discover her abilities in that place. There was no room to commune with nature, and communing with nature was a new thing to Hitomi, who was definitely city-reared. Her parents didn't even live in a house; they lived in a condo. Hitomi didn't think her parents had ever thought it was even necessary for her and Marlene to have a yard to play in.

But even as she was falling in love with the moon rising, she saw that this nature thing wasn't all it was made out to be. She tried to pick a cattail, but didn't realize that the tall grasses hid that they were growing out of pools of water. When she tried to break the stem, which turned out to be surprisingly tough, she slipped and soaked her entire left foot in the water. She ended up getting the cattail, but she left a single footprint on the gravel for several steps. The buttercups were easier to get.

Hitomi tried walking in the trees, but there were too many bugs there, so she went back to the road. At least if she was on the road, she was certain she wasn't trespassing.

When she came to a crossroads, she thought she needed a drink – the Popsicle meeting its demise ages ago. There were drainage pipes here, covered with heavy planks of wood. She went up to one expecting it to smell rank, but it looked like a good place to sit, and she had already tried to sit on the grass – without success. It was too pokey. But the pipe smelled fine and she realized what it was used for and had a seat. It offered a nice view as it was like an elevated dock on the sea of grass and fences.

Besides, her curiosity was eating her alive as to what Van had packed in the backpack for her. There was the water and the cell phone, just like he said. There was also a blanket, she supposed for her to sit on. Binoculars, tea lights, a lighter, a couple granola bars, sunglasses, a book of poetry, bug spray, a watch, and an envelope marked that she shouldn't read it until after midnight. It was Van's handwriting.

After midnight?

She smiled. It was her birthday the next day. He hadn't forgotten about it. How sweet of him!

With that she decided that she was in as good a place as any. She hadn't seen a single car or truck drive by since she had come out, so she thought she was safe to hang out here until she had done what Van asked her to do. She spread the blanket out over the wooden planks, took her shoes and socks off and laid down on it.

The clouds were drifting overhead in pinks and oranges against the navy blue sky. Night was coming and it was beautiful.

Van asked her to think about him and what she wanted. He wanted her to be certain about them she supposed. If she swore up and down that she knew what she was doing, he could hardly be blamed for taking her at her word, but was that what he wanted? Was that what he was trying to get from her? Was he trying to get the absolute assurance that an affair between them would be all right by her, and thus acceptable?

She wasn't sure if that was the case. What did she want?

It was easier than she expected for her to see the answer for that question. It was right in front of her as the wind blew against her bare legs and in her ears. She wanted commitment. She wanted him to blow Eries totally out of the water with all her doubts about Van's character, and prove that Hitomi was the only one for him. Yet … how could he do that if he kept their relationship a secret, and that seemed to be what he wanted.

The sun was falling further now. It was almost at the ridge.

It must be later than she thought. She looked at the watch Van had packed for her. It was after ten. Not too much longer to wait until midnight.

She took out the binoculars and looked at the moon. It was pretty big, and the white face was shining at her with exquisite brightness. Her symbol, huh? She was very lucky. The moon was a lovely symbol.

And Van was The Dragon.

Hitomi wondered for the first time how they would cope together if they didn't want the same things. It had never occurred to her before that a relationship might be more complicated than attraction and kindness. 'Well', she thought haughtily, "if he wants me to be his secret mistress, then he's got another thing coming.'

That was the moment she realized what he meant when he told her she was too young for him, but it seemed to her that he had left those concerns behind. He must want her badly enough for it not to matter to him whether she could handle something more mature or not. This thought pleased her, and so did the thought that he was giving her this time now to adjust.

But what happened if she went back and they couldn't agree on how to proceed? That was the real reason he said that it wasn't a good time for them to kiss. Hitomi knew that now.

She looked at the watch – eleven.

It wasn't cold out, but she was starting to get hungry, so she ate one of the granola bars. It was strawberry and dipped in yogurt. He was _really_ nice remembering that she liked strawberries! She hoped desperately that they would be able to come to a compromise.

It was dark now, and Hitomi looked up at the moon. She had to use some of this time to answer the other question he had asked her. What about her abilities?

This time to commune with nature was a good start. She took her protection gem off and looked at it. It was blushing crimson in colour, which Hitomi thought confusing since it was meant for her. Shouldn't it be white then to correspond with her talents, but then Van had made it. So, maybe it was fiery like him.

Hitomi looped it around her fingers and played with it in the dim light. There were some lights from the town in the distance. Not enough to be distracting, but enough to remind her that she wasn't alone.

She looked at her watch. Only ten minutes had passed! This last hour was going to be murder!

She ended up lighting one of the tea lights and reading the book of poetry Van had given her. Hitomi didn't think that Van was the sort of guy who read poetry. As she read it though, she started to think that maybe he hadn't read it. It didn't seem like the kind of thing a guy would read at all. There were long narrations about the skies and the seas and the passion of human hearts. The book its self was more interesting than any of the content. She flipped open the book and noticed that on the front leaf were the words written in what seemed like ancient script, but ball-point pen nonetheless, "To my love".

Hitomi ate the other granola bar and looked at her watch. Fifteen minutes to go. Ten minutes to go. Five minutes to go.

Midnight!

She ripped open the envelope and read the letter by the light of the candle.

_Dear Hitomi,_

_I wanted to kiss you at midnight on your birthday; to celebrate what I hope will be the second-best day of your life. It's hard for me that I can't be with you, so I'd like you to do something for me. Will you do it?_

_I'd like you to lie down on your back on that blanket, close your eyes, and imagine that I'm there with you. Picture me beside you and envision that I'm whispering to you exactly what you would want me to say. Imagine that I'm touching your windblown hair with my fingertips and confessing the greatest love you can dream of._

_I always want to tell you how I feel, but my words always seem wrong, like they are somehow inadequate. I feel so much more than I can express. I bought this book for you hoping that someone else, better at description, could make you understand the reaction I have when I'm near you. It all pales. They describe other women, but not you. They never loved you. They never saw your beauty, grace, or courage. Only I see that._

_And I'm helpless to tell you what I see._

_Happy birthday! I hope I can do a good job making it the second-best day of your life._

_Hopelessly tongue-tied,_

_Van_

Hitomi lay down on her back and thought about what he had written. He wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer … if she'd wanted to say 'no'. She didn't.

She put the binoculars up to her eyes and looked up at the moon again dreamily. How was she going to sleep that night?

* * *

Author's Notes: I can't promise that I'll always update this quickly, but I have honestly been working very hard on this story, and I just found out that I'm not going to the gym tonight. That leaves me with nothing cheerful to do, so I have to upload today instead of waiting until tomorrow so that I've at least done one happy thing today. 

Thank-you to Kat for beta reading. She's awesome! Ever so helpful! And thank-you to everyone who reads and reviews. You guys make me cheerful!


	3. Eighteen Candles

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. I just like to drive my car.

* * *

**Chapter Two**

**Eighteen Candles**

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

_What the heck! _Dazed Hitomi woke up to the sound of Van banging wildly on her bedroom door.

"Wakey, wakey!" he yelled. "You've slept for long enough. It's past ten and I've got breakfast ready for you Birthday Girl. Get up or I'm coming in."

"Come in!" Hitomi called back to him cheerfully, realizing that he was trying to threaten her.

He swung the door open, and with it invaded the smell of pancakes and cooked sausage. "Good morning!" he intoned, checking out what she had worn to bed – just the usual – T-shirt and boxer shorts. _His_ boxing shorts mind you, but he had never worn them. Hitomi and Van both lost all their clothes in the fire, so they had had to buy all their clothes afresh. So, it was a pair that had come fresh from the package. He had never worn them, but he had _purchased_ them, which was enough to cause Hitomi to snatch a pair before they had been used. They were sort of his that way. "You little thief," he said, seeing her, and recognizing them. "My property isn't safe with you around."

"Sorry, Van. You lie; I steal, and we're just going to have to learn to adjust to each other. Do you want them back?" she offered, pulling at the elastic band waist.

"No!" he said quickly. "They're yours now - happy birthday."

"But I don't want them if they're mine," she said, laughing and throwing a pillow at him. Leave it to him to ruin her sport.

He caught it. "Oh well, I guess you're modest enough. Get up or the food will be cold. I went through the trouble of cooking it for you, and I don't cook."

Hitomi jumped out of bed and followed him into the kitchen. "I thought what you made last night was good."

"Why thank you," he said in mock confidence. "However, you must realize that what I made is like the most rudimentary of all cooking. That's the sort of thing people cook when they're camping. I'm sorry, but I don't know how to cook other than what someone would eat while they're roughing it."

"Why is that?"

"I spent a lot of time camping by myself when I was a teenager," he explained.

"Well, this looks great," Hitomi said, looking at the spread he had set up on the table. It was simple. There were just pancakes, syrup, milk and sausages, but it looked good. "Thank you so much for making breakfast for me." She reached up and planted a brief kiss on his cheek.

They sat down together to eat.

"Did you have a good time last night?" Van asked, leaning over to fill their glasses.

"Yeah, I really did. You did a pretty good job planning a date you wouldn't go on."

"Is that what it seemed like?" he laughed. "Oh, well. I won't ask you if you were able to figure anything out … even though I'm dying to know."

"I'll tell you one thing for sure," Hitomi said, taking in a deep breath. "I wasn't able to learn much about my abilities. That part sure seemed to come hard."

"So you didn't make any progress?"

She shook her head and took another bite. "Are you disappointed?"

"Not in the least. Actually, that was only the beginning. We're going canoeing on the lake after this. Originally, I wanted to take you hiking, but I'm not sure how well I'd do with my leg, so maybe later on."

"Do you have the whole day planned out?" she asked, thinking how interesting this was going to be. She'd been on boats before, but she had never had to paddle one.

"Is there anything special you'd like to do on your birthday?" Van asked.

"Well," she answered after thinking a little. "There are lots of things I want to do, but not many of them are particularly birthday related. What did you have planned?"

"Then you won't mind me taking you around, eh?"

"No."

"Then, let's finish up and get going."

"But Van," she started out uneasily. A concern had popped into her head. "I don't have a swimsuit."

He scoffed, "You don't need a swim suit. Yeah," he said looking her over, "I'd let you out in public wearing my underwear. Your shirt is really cute too."

She looked down at his grey boxers and the light blue T she was wearing that said 'Angel' in blue sparkles across the front of it. Was it cute?

"As a matter of fact, don't change. I like you the way you are." He gave her a long look. "Is that okay with you?"

"I guess," she said.

"When I got up I repacked the backpack, so as soon as we're finished here, we really can head out."

When they finished, Van did the dishes, saying a birthday girl shouldn't have to worry about them. It was then that she realized he'd done them the night before as well, while she was out.

Soon they were in the car. Van was on the passenger side again and Hitomi was driving. He was very attractive. No baseball cap today, but he wore his sunglasses and a red shirt with a political joke on the back. She was dressed just as he suggested, except for a pair of sandals and olive tinted glasses.

"So, where are we going?"

"Astral Lake," he said. "It's about a forty minute drive from here. I'll give you directions."

They drove silently for a while with only the beat of the radio playing, until Hitomi could stand it no longer.

"You know, for someone so anxious to teach me about this gift, you're awfully tight lipped," she said.

"I know," he said, looking at her. "But that's not the only thing this trip is about. Even if we go on a hundred more trips, nothing will ever be like this first one. I was going to wait until we were out on the lake."

A silence followed, until Hitomi finally asked, "Well then, can we talk about something?"

"Anything you want to," he said noncommittally.

"Okay, I'll think of something. I got it. What are you going to do with the land your house used to be on?"

"Sell it, of course," he said. "I don't have any use for it now. Actually, after the cleanup is finished it'll go on the market."

"Do you know when that'll be?"

"No idea. I'm not there to supervise anything. Besides, the insurance company and the city are taking care of all that. I'm not even interested. I'm finished with the Abaharaki anyway."

"What'll Allen say when he hears?" she asked, a little distressed. She had almost thought that he didn't mean what he said about leaving them when he talked about it before.

"He'll probably be disappointed with me, but I don't really care. I still want to help free Celena though. I had never met her before we found her in the Dragon Slayer hideout. I never imagined that she would be such a defeated little creature – it was horrible. I don't care what Allen says. I'm not endangering other people anymore. If I feel like doing something rash, then so be it, I'll take the consequences, but this thing that's happened with Jeremy, Nick and Richard is breaking me down. Who knows what they'll be like when Dilandau and Folken let them out? There's no way they'll be the same after living with the Dragon Slayers for almost two months."

"You don't know what will happen?" Hitomi asked nervously.

"No, I have no idea. I can't even guess. This sort of thing has never happened before. I keep rolling the idea around in my head. Why did they want to keep those guys for six whole weeks? That's a lot of time to keep them and ensure their safety. Something smells bad and I can't even guess how things are going to turn out."

"Do you think they're being … tortured?"

"I don't know," he admitted, obviously uncomfortable, "But Allen's not being tortured. I know that for sure. They have a different plan for him."

"How do you know that?"

"He's Celena's brother. I'm sure they can think of plenty of uses for him that don't have anything to do with us. They said they'd give him back, but I don't know. They might change their minds about that."

"What'll you do, Van?"

"If that happens?"

"Yeah."

He smiled and touched her arm reassuringly. "I'll take care of it."

"You're not going to tell me more than that?"

"No," he said flatly and looked out the window.

Hitomi decided to hop back on the question of his house. It seemed safer. "So, are you going to buy another house when we get back to the city?"

"Hadn't planned on it."

"Don't you need some place to live?" she asked, wondering at his reasoning.

"Actually, I haven't finished making my plans about that yet. I've been so busy, I haven't even thought about it."

Hitomi wanted to ask him if she would be going with him wherever he decided to go, but in the end made up her mind not to.

"You're very curious today Miss Kanzaki," he said. "What brought all this on?"

"You never tell me anything," she grumbled.

He laughed at her expression. "That's okay. Most of this is supposed to be a surprise anyway. And you keep stealing my stuff. I have to do something to get back at you, but I have to tell you something, Sweetheart. When you wear a T-shirt, you can't see the body of the dragon or the moon on your arm. You only see the tail that slips down your arm. Even though I've seen your tattoo dozens of times now, the urge to pull the sleeve up and have one more look at it is almost impossible to resist."

"You seem to do quite well," she said. He hadn't done that once! Much to her disappointment! He never touched her, even though she wanted him to.

Finally, they came to the town outside Lake Astral, and to the hut that rented canoes to the tourists. Van and Hitomi got out of the car and walked over to it together – holding hands. Van had arranged everything previously and they only had to slip on their orange life jackets and go.

When the proprietor of the shop saw Van limp he said cautiously. "I wouldn't go out there if you're hurt."

Van shrugged his shoulders like he didn't care and said with his back turned to the man, "That's what the life jacket is for."

"Whatever you say," the man said, before going back into the hut.

Van showed her how to hold her paddle and put her in the front. "That way we can go wherever you want to – if there's anything you want to see." He threw their backpack in with them and he got into the back.

Once they were out on the water, Hitomi felt Van's eyes on her back. He was looking at her. She turned around to see his face, and he smiled broadly at her.

"You had _other _reasons for putting me up here, didn't you?"

"Of course," he grinned.

It was a nice day to be out on the lake. There were big white clouds in the sky that gave the occasional patch of shadow. The water was the coarsest shade of green Hitomi had ever seen. There was a slight breeze, and Hitomi was happy to be there. It wasn't just because she was with Van. She was starting to feel like he had a lot more to teach her and show her than just about love, but about … she didn't know how to describe it. It was like if she tagged along with him and did the things he loved she would learn everything. Not just about him or just about her or the abilities they shared, but she would learn about _everything _

She must really be a city girl if she was impressed by all of this, but she_ was _impressed. She never realized the world was this beautiful.

After they had been paddling for a while, Hitomi's arms were starting to burn. At first she thought it was easy, but now Van was the only thing pushing them along. She pulled her paddle out of the water and rested it across the front of the boat and turned around to look at him.

"I'm beat," she said, opening the backpack looking for some water. "You're sure a good at this. I guess it doesn't matter if your leg is hurt."

"It's stupid, isn't it? I feel like a cripple."

"What do you mean? You were shot after all. There's no reason to ashamed. It's not like you tripped on the sidewalk or something."

"Wow," he said lightly. "Chicks really do dig scars."

"Dang skippy," she laughed. "So, have we gone far enough? I'm tired."

"Sure, we can stop here and just float if you want to. Is all this new to you?"

"Yeah," she said, unconsciously putting her hand to her neck.

"There's some sunscreen in there if you want," he told her. "You're awfully pale, and I don't want you to burn. So, I was going to start off by telling you more about my uncle Balgus, if that's all right."

"Of course."

"I told you that he was the one I inherited my elemental abilities from, didn't I?"

Hitomi said that he had.

"His symbol was a wolf. He received his power one day while he was hunting. You have to understand that he didn't tell me any of this himself. My aunt told me a few things once she realized that I had inherited his power, so my story might be a little muddled."

"Which elemental powers did he possess?"

"I know he had air, like me. I saw him use it once when I was a kid. When I asked my aunt about it she agreed with me, but told me I had to find my own path and I couldn't focus on what Balgus did or had. I pressed her for more information of course, but she pushed me off every time, simply saying that she knew he wouldn't want to give me more information."

"It seems a little harsh that she wouldn't tell you anything more than that," Hitomi said.

Van shrugged his shoulders. "I still don't know if she had the right idea there or not, but I do know that she was really doing what my uncle would have wanted. After the incident where he used his air abilities he wouldn't tell me a word about it, even though I asked him all the time."

"What happened?"

"I fell off the roof, and he used his ability to stop me from slamming head-first into the driveway. He used the wind to direct me - head-first, mind you - into a stack of hay."

Hitomi giggled at the idea of Van getting literally thrown into anything.

"It wasn't funny. I was still hurt! It wasn't soft or anything. I was cut and stuff!"

"And he wouldn't talk to you about what happened?"

"No. He just kept saying that I wasn't supposed to talk about it. Anyway, I was left to figure things out for myself. I got my ability when I was a teenager. I told you the story about my seeing the Chinese dragon when my uncle died, didn't I?"

Hitomi nodded. "Tell me about the first time you used your power, Van?"

"It was nothing. At least it wasn't anything near as intense as what happened when you used yours for the first time. I was blown away by how tough you were," he said, taking a deep breath. "I was just at school with a couple of boys (not my friends), and they were getting bullied by the guys a few grades above us. I didn't like what they were doing, so I got in a fight with them. Actually, I didn't even hear about it until afterwards. The guys I punched didn't just have bruises, but burns too."

"The cops didn't charge you or anything, did they Van?" Hitomi asked in distress.

"No. Those kids were too stupid to want to admit that they had been hurt by a kid a couple years younger than them, but they did come for revenge."

"Did they hurt you?"

He shook his head. "It was too late. I'd already spoken with my aunt and gotten a pretty good idea as to what I could do if I was riled up. So, they couldn't touch me, and after a few failed attempts, they stopped coming. After that, I had an interesting reputation at school."

"Were you a delinquent?"

Van smiled. "I might have been … if I wasn't so studious. I got good grades, so I was left alone. Anyway, back on topic, I started practicing using the fire, but it was hard. I kept burning things by accident. Besides, I had to be _so_ angry before I could even get a spark. That's when Auntie told me to lighten up and try to use air, because after all, my symbol was a dragon. Once I started doing that, I got much better."

"So, how do you trigger the elemental powers in your mind for air? I thought of the beat of the music in the dance hall when I fell unconscious and made my heart beat just as fast. Then the feeling just came from me and the ice came with it. Is it like that for you?"

Van put his hand over Hitomi's excitedly. "You don't know how good it is to be able to talk to someone else like this. It's marvelous. I can't tell you how alone I've felt, being the only one who could do this. It makes me realize how much we were meant to be together and how overjoyed I am that I met you. Thank you Hitomi for believing in me."

"I'll always believe in you," she said, looking wonderingly into his eyes. Would right now be a good time to …

But Van interrupted her thought process and continued, "Well, it's interesting that you used the beat of your heart to get started. With fire for some reason, even though this doesn't make sense, it's the air in my lungs that powers the energy. I have to be breathing hard. You would think that you would use your own breath to start using an air element, but that isn't how it works. Isn't that curious? Anyway, before I use the air element, my body has to be very limber. I have to be totally relaxed, and then every motion I make will float me on air. It's interesting."

"You can fly!" she exclaimed.

"I wouldn't go that far," he said quickly. "Not only would I not want anyone to see me doing something so ridiculous, I don't know if it would work. I can only control the wind in gusts. I've often wondered if I could control something as powerful as a tornado, but whenever I think about it, I know that I don't want to. I have no use for power on that scale, nor do I know how to activate something like that."

"But do you think it's possible?"

"It might be."

Hitomi's mind suddenly clicked and she understood something that she wasn't sure if he meant for her to learn. "So, Van, do you accidentally set fire to things when you breathe too hard?"

"Sometimes, yeah I do, but I'm a lot better at controlling it than I used to be. Why?"

"Is that why you don't want to kiss me? Are you worried you'll breathe too hard and scald me? Is that why you're pushing me now to learn my ice skills?"

He looked at the water, tilting his chin away like he didn't want to answer her. "The thought did cross my mind," he answered slowly, "but I don't think it's possible for me to hurt you. At least I don't think so ... Sorry that I am what I am."

"The Dragon," she said, giving him a half smile. "I think that's pretty sexy."

His head whipped around. "You do?"

"You haven't been fooling around with anyone, have you?" she asked, feeling very confident.

"No," he admitted. "Even before I met you, I was afraid that I might hurt someone."

"And why you have never, to date, initiated a kiss between the two of us. It's always been me who made the first move, and you've even stopped me a time or two."

There was a moment when they were looking at each other, reaching for each other, but Van broke the spell and turned away.

"Okay, okay, okay," he said, dipping his paddle into the water again. "We can't talk about this anymore. A man can only take so much. Come on Hitomi. You were so strong that first time after I was shot. You acted so tough and wouldn't let us go too far, even though my control was so run down at the time. Be strong for me again!"

"But …" she started.

"Come on, Birthday Girl," he interrupted, "show a little stamina and enjoy the moment of anticipation."

"But …" she began again.

He looked at her as if to tell her to stop.

"Listen to me," she said forcefully. "You always avoid the topic of you and me and what we're going to do about all this. Why do you avoid the question? We need to work things out. Well, last night when you sent me off on my own, I worked things out and I know what I want. Why won't you let us have this conversation? Isn't this what you wanted?"

Van sighed deeply. "Can I tell you what I want?"

"Of course," she said openly, excited for the moment they could express what they were feeling. She desperately wanted to hear what he had to say. Everything in her heart was swelling for his moment.

"I need," he paused, "one more day."

"One more day?" she asked, her heart feeling like it was literally falling in her chest in disappointment. "Why?"

"We can have _that _conversation to your heart's content tomorrow if you want, but I want your birthday to be special and a nice day that you and I can always look back on as a great day, no matter what happens next."

His voice was so steady, she felt like arguing was a waste of time.

* * *

Author's Notes: Hiya folks. Special thanks to Kat for beta reading and everyone who reads and reviews. I LOVE you guys so much. You don't even know. 

Anyway, I wiped out all my forums on my profile page and started them up again - fresh. So, you can go check it out if you're interested. So go to my profile and then click on my forums and you're in. K? Love is all around the world tonight!


	4. A Wish

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. I just like scaring people.

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**A Wish**

Van explained more things about how he used his abilities as he and Hitomi puttered about around on the lake. He talked about how he used his mind to help him access the power and said how he hoped that things would come to her as easily as they had to him. He didn't think she'd have any trouble considering the power she was able to call upon when she fought Dilandau.

However, regardless of his care in explaining how their gifts worked, she was becoming impatient. It was nice that he finally felt comfortable enough that he would talk about it freely, but there was something missing.

He had asked for one more day before they could talk about their relationship, but Hitomi was having a difficult time believing that she would be able to give it to him. It wasn't that he was specifically flirting with her, or doing anything to make it harder for her to keep quiet on a subject she was dying to talk about. It was just the way he was moving, the way he was looking in her eyes or across the water. He wasn't doing _anything_, but her mind was spinning out of control.

Van said that he wanted her birthday to be a nice day no matter what happened next. Well, what was going to happen? She was starting to become seriously anxious about what would happen when Van went to The Voltage Room. He hadn't said a word to her about whether it had been a good idea for her to promise that he would go. As she saw his casual smile she was heartsick that she had made a terrible promise to Dilandau and Van was only acting like it didn't matter because he didn't want her to worry. At the time she had felt really stuck. She _had_ to promise Dilandau that Van would go, or they wouldn't have been able to get any assurance that they would get everyone back safely.

"Van?" Hitomi interrupted quietly. "What's going to happen that has you so worried that we'll never be happy like this again?"

"Sorry, Hitomi," he said, shaking his head. "I'm not going to tell you. You're just going to have to wait until tomorrow."

Hitomi had a hard time finding her voice, but she finally asked, "What horrible thing are you going to tell me? Whatever it is, I can handle it. I promise. I want to help you. Tell me what you think will happen."

Van stared at her, obviously shocked and a little confused. "You're sweet, Hitomi. Thanks for your support, but I don't think we're thinking the same thing. You're thinking about The Voltage Room, aren't you?"

"Yeah," she admitted.

"What's going to happen tomorrow doesn't have anything to do with that. Besides, that's weeks away. Try not to think about it," he said lightly. "So, want to head back to the dock? I only rented this thing for an hour and it's about time for lunch."

"Okay. Let's go back," Hitomi said, picking up her paddle and helping him turn the canoe around.

Once they were on shore, Van took Hitomi to a café for lunch. They sat on a patio and looked at the tourists walking by. She ate a sandwich and wondered if Van was regretting letting her out in public in his underwear, but when she looked at him, he didn't seem at all bothered.

"This really doesn't bother you?" she asked indicating his shorts.

"Should it?"

"It's not exactly 'normal'," she said to him in a pretend shy whisper.

He shook his head almost as if he were bored. "It's cute that you're so concerned, but I think it would probably be better if you abandoned any ideas you ever had of living a 'normal' life. I've tried to live a respectable type of life. I finished high school and went to university. I had planned to go to law school, get the shiny certificate to hang on my office wall and do my part for the rat race, but something always gets in the way. So, I live the weird half-life you're seeing now and I am free to do so because of my inheritance from that woman." He propped his head up on his palm and laughed cynically, "And I get into weirder situations by the day."

"You don't think I should finish high school, then?" Hitomi asked.

"No, I think you should. It's only a question of when we can spare the time for you to do it."

"But after that, I'll have to live a complex half-life of pretending to be a regular person when I'm not?"

"Something like that. All the Abaharaki know what I am, and if they were ever to discover our relationship, I think some would guess that you're like me in some way. A strong reason why I don't want it let out."

"You don't think Eries is suspicious as to why we've run off together?"

"She might be," he conceded. "But I've thought of a way to put everyone's fears to rest on that subject when we get back. So don't worry."

"What are you going to tell them?" Hitomi asked curiously.

"You don't seem to like it when I lie, so I'll just keep my little falsehoods to myself until we get back. Okay?"

"Come on. Tell me!"

"No," he said seriously giving her a level gaze. Once he was sure she wasn't going to resurrect the topic he continued, "But don't get me wrong, the life I live is not disappointing to me. I've been doing unconventional things for so long now that my little dream of being a lawyer seemed to get further and further away no matter how hard I tried. I think I knew deep down that I would never get to law school. Instead, I have to deal with more pressing matters."

"So you're not disappointed?"

"I said I'm through with the Abaharaki, so my career choice has become moot. I was only going to become a lawyer so I could set things straight and correct some wrongs. I had hoped that I could battle my way through court and nail the Dragon Slayers the proper way, but I've changed my mind. Things can't be settled with them that way, and I'm too pissed off now to want to take things slow."

"It sounds like you want revenge," Hitomi observed, thinking of what Dilandau said about Van's true intentions. Was Dilandau right about Van? She suddenly remembered the look on Van's face when Dilandau revealed the truth about his relationship with Folken. She looked at Van's face across the table. He looked angry, but not like he had that night.

"Revenge doesn't even begin to describe what I want," he said coldly, not looking at Hitomi, but at something past her. But as he spoke he seemed to realize that he was going too far and he shook his head and his facial expression shook off with him. When he looked at Hitomi again he was smiling, and he appeared to be just like his usual self. "I haven't told you what I had planned for the rest of the afternoon, have I?"

"No," she said, wondering exactly how much of his behaviour was simply a pretense used to cover his real self. Like a mask he put on to make himself seem harmless when really … he was a monster underneath? Hitomi thought that she should have been turned off by this observation, but she wasn't. Needless to say, she didn't want him to go overboard. It was that her feminine nature didn't want him to be ruthless enough to hurt people, but at the same time, there was something about him that made her want to calm him down. She wanted to take his hurt feelings and bind them up until he didn't want to do reckless things.

"What?" Van asked, noticing her looking at him.

"Oh, I was just noticing how good-looking you are," she said, saying the first plausible excuse that came into her head.

"That's a relief. For a second there, I thought you were going to start quizzing me again about what's going to happen tomorrow."

Hitomi immediately opened her mouth to ask him, but he silenced her with a raised forefinger.

"Don't even," he said, recognizing her intention. "Anyway," he continued. "Did you see that little beach off the lake? I thought we'd head over there and see if we could find a quiet spot to get some sun. Sound good?"

She nodded.

So, when they finished their meal they headed over to the beach. It was a nice day, so it was thronged with people. Van had a blanket, so they laid it out in the best place they could find that wasn't already taken, but the place was awfully full.

Hitomi sat down on the blanket and Van sat down behind her putting one leg on either side of her.

"My cast is really bothering me today, Hitomi. Would you mind helping me take it off?"

"Should you take it off?" she asked uncertainly.

"My leg's not broken, I was just shot. It shouldn't be a problem. Come on. It's really itchy," he complained.

Hitomi reluctantly helped him pull up his pant leg and unhook the buckles that were keeping it in place. The cast was actually a pretty secure piece of hardware and it was difficult to remove. When they finally did get it off, Hitomi noticed something was off right away. Where was the bandage?

"Van, where's your bandage?"

"Oh? Yeah, my leg's healed. Check it out." He showed her his brown leg, and he was right. There wasn't a mark on him.

"How?"

"I guess that's just one more advantage of being The Dragon. I haven't been seriously hurt since I got my abilities, so I guess I never knew it before."

"When did you know you were healing quickly?"

"The doctor told me when I woke up. He said I was healing while he was trying to stitch me up. He said I might not have needed stitches at all since Dilandau's bullet went clean through my leg. I had a scar, but when I checked last night, it was gone. I just didn't want anyone to learn about another one of my abilities. I'd like to keep something to myself, but with you – I can share anything – because you're like me. Pretty cool, huh?"

"Yeah. Do you think I can do that too?" Hitomi asked excitedly.

"I don't know, but honestly I hope you're never hurt bad enough for us to find out. So, do you want to go play in the water? I can come with you."

"Wait, so that's why you didn't listen to that man who didn't want you to go canoeing if you were hurt. But why all the secrecy? This is our second day here. Couldn't you have told me?"

"I did tell you – just now," he said, pulling his shirt over his head. "Come on. It'll only take us a minute to decide whether or not the water's too cold. It is only July. It might not have melted until yesterday."

Van turned his back on her and Hitomi saw the thing she had once wished never to see – the moon tattoo on his shoulder blade. There was the thick black outline of the crescent moon, curved jealously wise, and the inside of it was marked with cracks, like the moon itself was about to shatter.

"Van," she beckoned, trying to stop him from going too far away, she wanted to get a better look at it.

He turned around briefly and called to her, "Come on Hitomi!" His hand was shielding his eyes and his smile shone brightly in the afternoon sun. There was a black cord around his wrist, and the dragon tattoo by his hip was showing now. If all the girls on the beach weren't staring, Hitomi definitely was.

Whether it was his cheerful voice or the lure of the water, or something else entirely, Hitomi was distracted and went to go play in the water with Van.

Besides, it was cute to notice that he was wearing the same boxers as her.

* * *

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

_What the heck?_

"Oh yeah," Hitomi thought. She pushed herself up on her elbows and heard Van yelling on the other side of the door.

He had brought her home after playing at the beach and given her the chance to have a shower and to change. Then he took her out on a date. He took her to a hotel by Lake Astral and fed her shrimp and cake and then afterwards walked with her placidly around the shopping district of the little community. There were little white lights on the green leafed trees and it was fun to see what was in the windows. He walked with his arm around her waist, and occasionally brushed her hair out her eyes. When it finally got quite late he drove her back to the cabin and dropped her off at the front door like it was a regular date and he was about to go home. He kissed her passionately on the front step for a whole half hour before he finally tore himself away and opened the front door for her.

"Aren't you coming in?" Hitomi asked him.

"No," he said. "I've got something important to do, and now that I'm driving again I've got to take advantage of it and go take care of some business. My cell phone is crowded with messages and I can't think clearly if you're around. I'll be back later. Do me a favour though and be in bed before I get back. I'll see you later. Good night," he said, taking her hand and kissing it warmly.

She watched him drive away from the front door. He sure was a secretive guy. Oh well, at least he'd kissed her. If he hadn't she wouldn't have been able to handle it for much longer.

Now she rubbed her sleepy eyes and came into the kitchen. Van was sitting at the kitchen table drinking a glass of milk. There was a plate of muffins beside him. They were obviously purchased this time. She saw the plastic container they came in on the counter. Not that it mattered. Hitomi always cooked when she lived with him, Miguel, and Chid. It really was a vacation for her not to have to cook so much.

"Good morning," she said pleasantly, sitting down at the table.

"Morning," he said back to her. "Are you ready for another fun day?"

"You've got _more_ planned?" she asked incredulously.

"Not exactly," he admitted. "I just wanted to take you somewhere interesting so we could have our 'conversation'."

"Oh yeah," Hitomi said. "Can we go right now? I can take one of these muffins with me and I can get changed really fast."

"Whenever you're ready to go," he said, sounding like he wasn't in a hurry. He picked up his magazine and looked like he was ready to wait forever. Hitomi noticed that he was already showered and dressed. How early did he get up anyway? She didn't know if he was naturally a morning person, but he always seemed to be up early, taking care of things and going places. He'd been that way when they lived in the city too.

Well, even though she'd been allowed to sluff it the day before, today she wanted to look good, so she went and got in the shower. It was sort of anticlimactic to have to bother with the ritual of getting herself ready for the day when she was anxiously waiting for what Van had to say. The night before she had hardly been able to sleep she was so worried about it. Yet from what he had already revealed, it didn't sound like he was going to drop a bombshell on her … or did it?

Finally, she was in her bedroom putting the final touches to her makeup. Hitomi didn't usually wear much makeup and today wasn't different, but she needed to calm down and she was having such a hard time taking it easy.

When she came out into the hall, Van was standing in the kitchen twirling his keys on his fingers. He looked nervous.

"Ready?" he asked when he saw her.

"Yup," she said, coming towards him.

Van drove her down the road to a little prairie town called Rose Hill. He had taken the convertible top down and the warm summer air was whipping Hitomi's hair around her ears and into her eyes. They drove by little country houses. People were watering their lawns and making little rainbows in the air. There were teenagers walking down the streets and old people sitting on country benches. It looked like a really sweet place. Rose Hill, huh.

Van drove her to a small chapel surrounded by neat little sunken graves on the outskirts of town. She had never been to a church like this before, and the cemeteries she'd been to had never been near the churches. Thus she could only surmise that the church was very old. There was no parking lot; only a driveway that looked like it hadn't been used in ages. When Van stopped the car, and Hitomi could see the building better, she decided that it must be deserted. No one had probably used it in ten years – maybe more.

Hitomi got out of the car and walked up the front steps of the church with Van. "Is this a special place?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Not really. It was just a place I looked forward to seeing on the road to Astral Lake when my aunt and uncle used to take me. It has no significance to me other than that, but I always had an idea when we drove past."

"It's deserted, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but that doesn't matter. Would you like to go inside? I have the keys." He took them from his pocket and opened the door. There was a front porch and then a chapel. It had old wooden weather worn pews and Hitomi saw that a part of the ceiling was broken away to reveal a tear into the world outside. It was airy enough that the room didn't smell too bad. There were dried leaves in the corners and fresh leaves falling in a broken window at the far end by the pulpit. There was a large stain glass window at the front as well of a tree with green leaves as a border. It had probably been a really beautiful place once, and indeed it still had a charm to it, though Hitomi couldn't describe it.

Van was striding up the aisle like he came here all the time.

"You sure go to some unusual lengths to ensure privacy," she commented, following him at a slower pace.

He turned and looked at her. "I just don't like to do anything the ordinary way – including this."

"Unconventional to the last, eh?" she said jokingly. "But we can talk now, can't we?"

"Unless you'd like to take a walk through the cemetery first."

"Is there anything specific you wanted to show me? Or …"

"No, it's just a charming cemetery. I'm not morbid or anything. It's just a very old place, and I like a place with a little history to it. There's a lot of talk in town about having this old church torn down. I don't think they have any plans for moving the graves or anything like that, but this place has gone to ruin, so they're thinking of tearing it down."

"Are you sad about it?"

"You know Hitomi," he said, not answering her question. "I've been waiting for you to turn eighteen. Once you turned eighteen, and I got the necessary papers, I could do this, but not before."

"Do what?" Hitomi asked, her eyebrows drawn together. She didn't understand what he was leading up to.

"I didn't get you a birthday present. Did you notice?"

"You didn't have to. You spent the whole day with me and made such a fuss over me it was incredible."

"I wanted to do one more thing," he said, pulling something out of his pocket and handing it to her. "I already got you a necklace, so I wanted to get you something else. A ring?"

Hitomi opened the box that Van put in her hand. "Oh!" Hitomi exclaimed upon seeing the bright milky stone set in silver.

"I'm not romantic," he started saying.

"Oh, I think you are," Hitomi breathed, reaching up to kiss him, but Van didn't seem to notice the invitation and looked down at the ground and away from Hitomi.

"No, I'm not. Everything I've done for you for the past two days has been the results of very careful planning on my part since I met you. Not exactly this trip, but I planned on being with you and making you feel special." Then he looked into her eyes. "You are everything I dreamt about and more. I can't promise that our lives will be exactly as they have been for the past two days. I can't say I'll make better days than these have been either. There will be hard days in the future – that – I can promise. All I can say is that I love you and want you more than anyone ever has or ever will. I'm giving you this ring with the hope that you'll agree to marry me. Will you, Hitomi?"

"Van … this is so …"

"Abrupt? Unconventional? I know; it's both."

"I want to marry you," Hitomi said with confidence, remembering her decision under the starry sky the first night they came. Van was definitely not the prince charming she had imagined herself marrying when she was a child. She did not expect to get whisked off her feet by a man who had several tattoos and drove a black convertible. He was older than her by years, he kept secrets, was a reputed flirt, and set fire to things accidentally. What would her parents say? But even with all these strikes against Van as a perspective husband, this was what she wanted with him. Life with him would never be boring for he, himself, was so fascinating as to capture her senses and drive her to distraction. He was the perfect man for her even with all his faults; there was no one else for her.

"Today?" he asked.

"… Today?" she blurted - her eyes wide. "You want to marry me _today_?"

"I told you. I had to wait until you were eighteen before I could get a marriage license. Didn't I?"

"No you didn't."

He ignored what she said and kissed her with wild abandon in the church aisle. Then he let go of her and headed to the exit, holding her hand and pulling her along with him. "I suppose I also left out the part where I confess that I broke into your parents' apartment to steal your birth certificate."

"You did WHAT?" she hollered, hanging onto his hand and running with him.

He locked the doors to the church behind them and said with a broad smile, "I couldn't get a marriage license without your birth certificate. You have to be at least eighteen before you can get married without your parents' consent. Didn't you know?"

* * *

Author's Notes: Hiya everyone! I bet no one expected THAT, now did ya? 

Special thanks to Kat for beta reading and to everyone who reads and reviews. I love you guys ever so much!

And my forum is accessible through my profile page. Enjoy!


	5. Vow of Silence

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. This is my valentine to everyone. HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

* * *

**Chapter Four**

**Vow of Silence**

Van and Hitomi left the church, and he explained what he had planned for their wedding day so that she could make any changes she liked. They got in the car and he talked rapidly as they drove along the kilometers on their way back to the shopping district in the town by Lake Astral.

"I want us to get married in that church," he explained. "I've already called the local minister. His name is Dr. Owen and he's agreed to marry us at that church at 11:30 tonight under the stars. What do you think, Hitomi?"

Hitomi was dazzled. This certainly wasn't going to be what she imagined her wedding to be like. As he explained what he had in mind the scene became clearer to her. There would be no guests, just the minister (to marry them), the minister's wife (to witness it), Van and her. That would be it. Her parents wouldn't be there, and neither would her sister, Marlene. Millerna wouldn't be her bridesmaid either. Hitomi would have no bridesmaids. They would get married at night, which was another thing Hitomi had never considered. She had always thought she would get married in the glorious light of morning. There would be no reception and big dinner after the wedding. Van said he would take her for a special dinner before though. No wedding presents and absolutely no one to wish them well.

Music? He promised that there would be music.

He was taking her now to purchase her wedding dress, and was telling her that she needn't bother with a white dress if she didn't want to. He was saying something about how their lives weren't conventional, so she didn't have to bow to convention, unless she wanted to. He was saying he had no intention of wearing a tuxedo.

Hitomi was a little overwhelmed. She didn't know what to say about all of this, but she wouldn't let herself become confused by her doubts. She loved Van, and even with their differences she knew they would get along well together. Besides, who got the opportunity to have a wedding like this? The more he talked the more the idea solidified in her mind and the more she wanted to go through with it.

At last Van dropped her off in front of a women's dress shop. There weren't many in this town, but they both decided that this one would probably be the best one to start at. He pulled up in front of the curb and took out his wallet to give her his credit card.

He gave it to her with a smile. "And to think, I was worried it would already be gone. Pick something you really like, okay Darling?"

Hitomi took it from him and gave him a kiss. "You're not coming in with me? Where are you going?"

"I'm going to buy candles. I don't want to risk the room being too dark for the pastor to read. See you soon," he said, getting out of the car and opening her door for her. "Have a good time. Call me on my cell when you're done."

"Okay," she said, letting him help her out of the car and going into the shop.

Hitomi had never been ordered into a boutique with the mission being to get a wedding dress. Before Millerna had been killed, Hitomi hadn't even selected the dress she was going to wear to graduation. Now she had to choose her wedding dress!

As she glanced around the racks, she saw that she was lucky that Van didn't care that the dress was white or not. She was never going to find a white dress. One of the sales ladies came up to her and asked her if she needed any help. It was a girl of probably sixteen who was working there for a summer job.

"I'm looking for a dress," Hitomi started.

"Anything in particular?" the girl asked clicking her gum, almost like she was bored.

"Something really hot," Hitomi said. "Do you have anything like that?"

"Hot? Like a tube top with a skirt or …"

"No, I want straps, or at least one strap. I like off–the-shoulder, but I need something that's going to highlight my tattoo and show it off," Hitomi said, lifting her shirtsleeve and showing the girl the dragon and moon that laced up and down her arm.

Suddenly, the girl seemed more interested in helping Hitomi. She seemed to have won a certain amount of respect and fascination when she sported her tattoo. "Is it for something special?" the girl asked.

"Yeah," Hitomi said, putting her shirt back in place. "I need a dress that is totally unforgettable. Do you have anything like that?"

"Come in the back," the girl offered and took Hitomi into another room in the boutique. "You can see what we have yourself. Our summer collection has already been picked over and it's too early for winter stuff, but you can definitely have a look to see what we've got."

Hitomi looked around at the racks, but wasn't too satisfied. "Can I ask you a question? Do you have any bridal shops in town? This place is pretty small, so I'd understand if you don't."

"You're looking for a wedding dress?" the girl asked with wide eyes.

"On the fly," Hitomi admitted.

"Gee, I don't know. I was just going to suggest you have a look at those pink things, but if you're looking for a wedding dress, I really don't think I can help you."

"Show me the pink stuff," Hitomi persisted, and followed the salesgirl to the rack.

The dresses she showed Hitomi were pretty boring, but there was one – obviously the more popular of the two that was not pink, but a pale cream with peach coloured blossoms on it. Hitomi would have bought it at once if it hadn't been an off-the-shoulder. In the end, Hitomi had to walk away and head towards the sales rack that contained rejected graduation gowns.

It was really depressing, but she ended up finding what she wanted in that very rack. There was a pale blue gown of flowing satin with an overlay of gauze like a silvery spider web. It was lovely, but it was in the damaged pile. One of the spaghetti straps had come undone. Hitomi wasn't sure how she was going to fix it in time for the evening. She didn't have a needle or thread with her or back at the cabin, and she was positive that was all she needed.

She stood at the cash register wondering what she was going to do. How could she get it fixed? Van's credit card went through without a problem and the little salesgirl stapled her receipts together.

"That's it!" Hitomi gasped. "Can I borrow that for a second?"

"Borrow what?"

"The stapler," Hitomi said, pulling the dress from the bag – the stapler in one hand and the dress in the other.

The horrified clerk looked on as Hitomi used the stapler to secure the strap. "You know this is a final sale, right?"

"Of course," Hitomi said, pulling the dress away to look at her handy work. It wasn't so bad. She bet Van wouldn't notice that she'd stapled it shut.

* * *

The minister met them at the church at 11:30. Van left Hitomi in the porch to get dressed while he, the minister, and the minister's wife set up the candles in the chapel. He told Hiotmi that one of them would knock when they were ready for her. 

Hitomi put her clothes on with a slow deliberation. Did she really know what she was doing? She was actually on the verge of getting lawfully wedded. Was she sure she was doing the right thing?

She put on the dress, but didn't have any stockings. It was embarrassing but she didn't have a pair of slippers or pretty shoes to wear and in the end simply had to wear the black boots she had worn out at the beginning of the day. Her hands were bare, as she didn't have gloves, and the ring Van had shown her earlier was with him. It was to be their wedding ring. She had no veil, and her only adornment was the pendant Van had given her.

And she was actually on the brink of being married!

She didn't feel at all bridal wearing a graduation dress, but there was something about the night air. Something about the muffled hurried sounds coming from the chapel that filled her with hope and elation.

Her hair was longer than it had been in the spring and it was almost down to her shoulders. It had a little curl in it too, so she didn't feel as boyish as she had with her shorter haircut.

Van had also given her some blue roses to carry with her down the aisle. She had mentioned something about it being a pity that her father couldn't walk with her, and what Van said in response to that surprised her.

"I don't want your father to give you to me. I want you to choose to come to me. Who ever thought of 'giving people away'? It's absurd," he said condemningly.

"Yet, you don't want to live in sin," she said, teasing him.

"No. I want a contract between us," he said gently, very gently, so gently that Hitomi forgot to be suspicious about the word 'contract'. It was unusual, but because of his steady soothing voice, the context of the word was lost on her.

Hitomi stood in the porch ready to go in and waited and waited for the knock to come. Would Van knock? Hitomi's heart was turning circles around in her chest. She began thinking about what Van said about their lives together being hard. To her that meant the pain of being with a friend when they died – like Millerna. Sometimes Hitomi felt haunted by her. All Hitomi's important decisions always managed to work their way back to Millerna. She wanted to live her life freely, so that Millerna could be proud of her, and so that when Hitomi went to meet her she had no regrets.

There was no way Hitomi was free from Dilandau's interest since he had seen her in action. It wouldn't matter where she went or what she did, someone would always come after her. She was like Van. Someday, would there be an entire group focused on killing her too? Life was going to be difficult whether she married Van or not. She wanted him by her side.

The knock finally came, and the door to the chapel creaked open. It was completely dark inside. When suddenly a warm hand took hers and led her into the room. Hitomi heard the door shut behind her. It was pitch black, except for the light from the stars where the roof was cracked. She wanted to call out, but resisted. She couldn't be alone; someone had led her in.

Then the music started. A lilting flute began to play (was there a stereo?), and then with a wave of Van's hand, the room was suddenly radiant. The chapel was filled with the soft glow of candlelight and she saw the scene that had been waiting for her. The minister's wife had brought her into the room and Van and the minister were standing at the end of the aisle.

It was Van she saw first. He was incredible. He wore a white shirt, but no tie of any kind, and as a matter of fact his shirt wasn't even done up. His hair and skin looked darker than ever. Hitomi couldn't take her eyes off him. No groom ever looked as good. Thank goodness he despised convention.

Each pew had a candle poised on the end of it, and there were candles set in large bowls of water in a circle surrounding Van and the minister. There were also candles alight in holders nailed to the walls. The music playing sounded heavenly.

But the airy song and the soft warm lights were not the best things besides Van in the room. The minister and his wife seemed genuinely pleased that they had been asked to participate. They were not young, and looked as though they had enjoyed many years of marriage. Hitomi knew she might not have been able to feel near as happy if their faces had been downcast. Instead, it seemed like they really did wish her and Van all the happiness in the world.

The music didn't stop as the minister read the prayers and married them quietly. As Hitomi looked into the intense warmth of Van's eyes she felt like she had never even been alive until this moment. It was magical, and very much different than any other marriage she had ever been to. This was like Romeo and Juliet, or an eloping couple who no one wanted to get married. The deep love between them seemed to be in every glance, every touch, every moment ticking on a clock, and made every word the man said fill Hitomi with gratitude that she was alive to feel this.

At last, Van was saying his lines and she heard herself saying hers. The minister allowed them to kiss. They brought their heads together and touched their lips. Van's breath was hot, and suddenly she realized that he really had been holding back every other time they kissed. This was very singular. The heat didn't hurt her, but instead seemed to evoke another emotion in her … like … she didn't know how to describe it. What was it?

A kiss like this, the forever kind of kiss that seems to slow time, and make disasters wait, was finally disrupted by a spark of flame to Hitomi's left. She involuntarily turned her head and dropping her flowers she saw that one of the candles on the pew had fallen and the bench was now on fire. The wood was dry and the flame was arching higher and higher.

Van turned his head and saw it too, but his face became excited - intrigued. "Try to put it out, Hitomi. Use your abilities."

Hitomi saw that the blaze was spreading. The fire had spread through the floorboards onto the next pew. She tried to concentrate, but she saw that one of the candles had burned the paper on the wall and soon the roof would be on fire. This was really serious! And he meant for her to put it out? Hitomi closed her eyes and desperately tried to listen to the beat of her heart, but the clarity wasn't coming in the same way as it had the night with Dilandau.

"Van!" she yelped, feeling like she couldn't do it.

"Calm down," Van was whispering into her ear, "Take things slowly."

She listened to her heart, or at least tried to. The fire was making her panic. What if she wasn't able to stop it? Would the church burn down? Van and the others hadn't moved. Hitomi stole a quick glance back at the minister and his wife. Neither of them had moved, and, in fact, neither of them looked the least bit afraid. Who were these people? Where had Van found them? They weren't even shocked by Van lighting the candles all at once.

That thought gave her some comfort. Van had lit all the candles at once, so theoretically she could put them out all at once, as well. It was getting hot in the room now, and Hitomi was really distressed now. Her heart was beating wildly, but she forced herself to relax. She had to make her heart beat rhythmically.

Van was too close to her. He was distracting. She pushed him away blindly with the palm of her hand, and she heard him step away from her.

She didn't open her eyes. She didn't want to see how much of the building had burnt. It was becoming smoky, and if she checked the damage that had been done one more time, it might get beyond her power to control it.

She put her hands out as she had before and simply believed she could do it. Hitomi felt the ice ripple from her fingers, but it wasn't the same as it had been when she had fought Dilandau. There was no wind, but the ice fell from Hitomi's hands like fog. The white mist crept across the floor and up the walls, extinguishing the fire with it. Hitomi opened her eyes and saw what was happening. It jumped from her fingers like little frogs leaping into a haze hanging over a lake early in the morning. The room filled steadily with the vapor until the fire in the ceiling stopped blazing, as well.

Hitomi had put the fire out and it was as dark as when she had first entered the room.

Then a light blazed. Van was holding a small globe of fire in his hands. "You're incredible, Hitomi," he said gently. He held the light up beside his face, so that one side was shaded and the other warmed by the light. She couldn't see the minister or his wife, the fog was too thick.

"Really, Van?" she asked, knowing full well she had done really well.

"Mr. Fanel," the minister interrupted. "We still need to sign the papers."

Van took Hitomi's hand in his and led her over the bowls of water to the pulpit, which happened to be the only reasonable place in the room for a person to write something. But since the candles had gone out, Hitomi was starting to feel that the good feelings that had existed at first in the room had vanished. It was cold in the church now, and wet.

The minister presented them with the documents and a pen for each of them to sign their name with. Van signed first with his right hand in steady strokes, and then he gave Hitomi the pen with an encouraging smile. She took the pen in her hand, but she couldn't seem to keep it steady enough to write her name. Finally she got it out – Hitomi Kanzaki.

She was suddenly very cold, but she thought she had no reason to be. It was summer outside. Maybe it was just the way Van's fireball lit the room and the mist.

"I hope you will be very happy, Mrs. Fanel," the minister's wife said as she took her husband's offered hand and exited the front of the building.

Hitomi was sorry to see them go, but she managed to bid them farewell with the smile only new brides wear and wished them well.

Once they were gone, Hitomi turned around to see Van. He was still standing behind the pulpit. He was taking their marriage certificate and putting it into an envelope. He looked different in that light. He didn't look like a good-looking teenager who was more on top of the game than most. That was how she had viewed him at first. He stood there with the papers in hand seeming … like an alter ego of himself. He seemed like a hero from a gothic romance standing in a ruined castle; with only a lonely candle by his side … she _had _to stop reading those books.

She trusted Van. There was just something about this moment that was disquieting. Maybe it was how Van obviously forced her to use her power and put something at stake for her to save. It was ridiculous that she wanted to save that little church. Now that there had been a fire there, it would be torn down for sure, and Hitomi felt sick at the thought of it. Now it was a place for her memories. A place where she had Van had pledged their love and it would be ruined no matter what she had done.

Perhaps she should have let it burn down.

In any case, they were the last couple to be wed in that little church, and Hitomi felt that there was a certain kind of finality about that thought that left a shadow over her marriage.

"Van," she asked, quietly, "You were hoping that those candles would start a fire, weren't you? Was it your intention to burn this church to the ashes?"

He regarded her patiently before answering. Finally he said, "Do I seem heartless? I thought you were magnificent."

"Answer me," she said, softly, "Did you set that fire intentionally?"

"Yes," he said. "But I wouldn't have let it get out of control. I would have stopped it before any of us were really in danger."

"How would you have done that?"

"If I start a fire, you'd better believe that I can stop it just as easily. Please don't look at me like that. I am trying to teach you, and the only ways I have been able to think up have been rather brutal, but I can't just tell you to use your ability and have you use it with no motivation. Could you learn anything that way?"

"I don't know," she said, stepping over the bowls of water and picking up her fallen roses.

"Are you angry with me?"

Hitomi thought carefully before answering. "No, I don't think so. Tell me though, who were those people?"

"The local minister and his wife. I told you, didn't I? Dr. Owen."

"Yes, I believe you told me all that, but who were they that they weren't surprised by your abilities or mine?"

"Oh, that was nothing. This was just the church he and his wife were married in, and he was willing to do one more wedding here. I told him it would probably be a very weird wedding and to take no notice of it. Everything that would happen was very explainable."

"So, he and his wife were just here to enjoy the show?"

"I guess. Are you ready to go?" Van asked.

She paused. "It was a weird wedding, wasn't it? You and I … the way we are."

"You look gorgeous. A goddess would be jealous," he drawled.

"So, you're going to take me home now?"

"I have no home," he said, coming close to her and taking one of the roses in her hands. "Wherever you are, is where I belong now … for the rest of my life. I love you … let me show you."

* * *

That night, before Hitomi went to sleep, Van whispered into her ear, "Hitomi, will you promise me something?" 

"Anything," she breathed recklessly, tangling her fingers in his hair.

Van kissed her throat and whispered a few hot words to her. "Will you promise me that you won't tell anyone that we're married?"

"What?" she asked, sitting up.

"All the same reasons still exist why we couldn't tell anyone before. Please promise you won't tell anyone unless it's life or death. I don't want to risk your safety. Please promise me."

Hitomi looked at him doubtfully. She didn't want to make such a promise, but she saw his point of view, and finally promised. "You won't tell anyone either?" she asked afterwards.

"No. It's our secret."

* * *

Author's Notes: Yep! That was the mushiest chapter. If anyone is wondering as to the weirdness of Van's attire, I have to say it's because of a personal pet peeve of mine. Why is female formal wear revealing and male formal wear so decent? Not that I think guys should be running around at weddings with their shirts unbuttoned. I think dresses should be just as modest as what the men get to wear. It wouldn't have worked in this case for Hitomi to be buttoned up to her chin (where was she going to find a dress like that?) , but I dislike the double standard so much that I found I could only tolerate the chapter if Van had to show something off too. So, that's why. 

Anyway, thanks to Kat for beta reading and to everyone who reads and reviews. Any other author's notes will be contained in my forum (if you're interested), which is accessible through my profile page. THANK-YOU! I LOVE YOU ALL!


	6. The Road Back

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I do enjoy a good can of grape pop.**  
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**Chapter Five**

**The Road Back**

The morning Hitomi and Van prepared to go back to the city was an ordinary one, except that they were leaving. The four weeks they got to spend together had gone by so quickly. It was the end of their honeymoon now and it was so very sad. Van put his cast back on his leg like he was still hurt and got into the passenger side of the car. Hitomi got in beside him and sparked the engine.

They had a few quick errands to do before they got on the highway back home.

"How is it going to be?" Hitomi asked suddenly, realizing that this might be one of the last times they would really get to talk to each other alone. "When we're staying at your aunt's house? Are you going to ignore me, or are we going to be friendly with each other, or what?"

Van sighed and looked out the car window with the air of a man on death row. He didn't answer her.

"You said you thought up something to tell everyone to take suspicion off of us. What was it?" Hitomi prompted.

"I wasn't going to say anything tonight," he finally admitted. "I have some errands to run in the city this afternoon. I called Gaddes last night and asked him to meet me at the farm. He's going to take me around and I need to have a meeting with him about how we're going to handle things at The Voltage Room tomorrow."

"You're still not going to tell me anything about that?"

"No."

"Why not? I am your wife," she told him saucily.

"And as wonderful as you are, I'm still not going to tell you. It might be dangerous and I don't want you to worry. Besides, I want you to wrap your head around solving a problem."

"What's that?"

"When, my dear, are you going to finish high school? I think it's really important for you to at least finish that much, don't you?" he said, sounding depressed.

"I don't know," Hitomi said, thinking about it carefully. "I can see why I need the diploma, but I just really don't want to do it anymore. I feel too grown up to go back to the old classrooms and all that. Couldn't I do distance learning, or something like that?"

"If you want to," he said, still directing his gaze out the window and looking truly despondent.

"Lighten up, Van," Hitomi said encouragingly. "What's got you so depressed? I'm sure we'll find time to be together at your aunt's."

"I'll make sure if it," he said, finally turning to look at her. "You're beautiful, Hitomi. This is going to be much harder than I thought it was going to be, but do you mind if I try to sleep a bit? I didn't sleep much last night."

"Were you up worrying?" Hitomi asked, with real concern for him.

"… Perhaps," he said dully, and he closed his eyes.

It was a four-hour drive from Rose Hill to Van's aunt's house, and Hitomi had barely covered half an hour's worth of road before Van zonked out beside her. He tilted his seat back and was totally oblivious to everything. Hitomi turned off the stereo and reflected on the time they got to spend together at the cabin.

After their wedding day, Van had given her lots of chances to improve her ability. They took the little stereo system that had played at their wedding and set it up outside. He played dance music for her to get her heart beating quickly. She got so good that when she listened to her favourite songs, she could practically make ice sculptures in the yard, but when the melody was a low beat she couldn't call forth a snowflake. Van would set fire to branches and she would put them out before he even made a burn mark on the bark. Van was impressed, and so was she. He was right that the ability came easily to her once she realized that she could do it. It was like whistling or riding a bicycle.

Probably the most memorable day was the one where he took her on a bit of a nature hike by a bubbling stream. It was there that he told her about his brother – Folken. Hitomi hadn't been able to get what Van told her out of her mind. It had been boiling like a dangerous brew in her head since she heard.

"Folken," Van started saying, "is almost ten years older than me. He was fifteen when he got himself involved with drug dealers at school. The situation was different though, compared to what normally happens when kids get involved with dealers. He wasn't interested in drugs. He was interested in selling drugs, and oddly enough he was really good at it. He was kicked out of school when he was in grade ten and at the same time left home to go live and work in the city for the drug lords. Needless to say, my parents weren't thrilled about this, so they packed their bags and prepared to go after him. They left me with Aunt Flo and Uncle Balgus."

Hitomi could see where this was going, and the tone and measure of Van's voice told her that this wasn't a story he told to just anybody. In fact, this was a story he told to absolutely no one. He had been skipping rocks across the water, but once he started talking about Folken, none of the rocks he threw skipped even once. She was terrified as to what he was going to say next.

"They didn't come back?" she asked quietly.

"No, they didn't come back. Folken lived and both my parents were killed," was all Van said about it.

Hitomi did not want to press him for details. The story seemed too cruel. It seemed an awful burden Van had to carry. She ached to heal his wounds, but how could she when they were so deep?

"You know how I said that you and I were the only people who could use the elemental abilities?"

Hitomi nodded.

"I lied. I do know of one other person, and that's Folken. He managed to get the ability from my uncle, as well. I saw a flash of his symbol before I woke up when I received my abilities. When I explained what had happened to Auntie, she told me what she thought had happened. Well, I saw him at the Dragon Slayers' hideout, and it's definitely true. I'd always sort of hoped that she was wrong."

"What's his symbol?" Hitomi asked seriously.

"A crow," Van answered.

"Are you worried about going to meet him?"

"Not really," Van said, shrugging his shoulders and slamming his hands into the pockets of his jeans. "What has me worried was what Dilandau said. He said that Folken wanted to meet you. That has me terrified."

"I didn't understand that at the time. What would Folken want with me?" Hitomi asked.

"It's obvious. He wants your talents. He wants mine, too. At least, that's what he said when I talked to him. He made his offer to me and I was so angry I smoked the room. It was hard putting out the fire I started that time, but I had to. Then Folken took off and you came and had your argument with Dilandau. He's a coward."

"Dilandau?"

"I don't think Dilandau's a coward," Van said patiently. "I'm sorry, I was talking about Folken. Dilandau may be cruel beyond my wildest dreams. I can't believe what he did to Celena, but at least he's honest about it. He doesn't sneak around like Folken and use subtleties and innuendo. Besides, Dilandau isn't who I'm after."

"What was the offer Folken made you?"

Van crouched down by the water and dipped his fingers in the ripples. "I'd rather not talk about it. It wasn't something I would consider, but he's definitely not happy with me now, and I can't say how things will go when I meet with him. He's taking revenge on me by keeping Allen and the others." Van paused before saying very slowly, "I'll probably have to do what he asks when I go there."

"Isn't there another way?" Hitomi asked, now feeling wretched that she had been the one to promise that he would go.

Van stuck his tongue in his cheek like he was thinking hard. "I don't know. I won't know until I get there and see what sort of setup he's got going on. The worst thing about all this is that The Voltage Room is not a club I've ever gone to. No one has ever been there. It's a Dragon Slayer club and its grand opening is scheduled for the day after I go to meet Folken. I got the address but there's no way I can do enough recon to not walk straight into the trap."

Van looked positively venomous while he spoke. Hitomi realized that she had stumbled on a darker side of his nature with this conversation. This was the part of him that should have warned her not to marry him, but she wanted to help purge him of these feelings. It was just that at this moment, Hitomi was helpless to help him. He had to go to The Voltage Room to get those four guys back. She didn't even approve of leaving them for dead.

Now she saw the road stretch ahead of her and she was wondering what would happen when he went. She was absolutely confident that he would find a way out. Folken wouldn't be able to get the better of Van. That just seemed impossible.

* * *

When they arrived at last at Aunt Flo's house, Aunt Flo, Eries and Gaddes were there to greet them. Apparently, Chid had been sent to go live with a relative on the coast, so there were only the three of them. As soon as Van got out of the convertible, he called Gaddes over and they left to go to the city.

Hitomi was then left with Eries and Aunt Flo. Eries helped her carry the bags in, and invited Hitomi to sit down with them for lunch.

"How was the trip?" Eries asked, looking suspicious and very interested in Hitomi's answer.

"Oh, it was fun," Hitomi said noncommittally.

"So, what did you guys find to do all by yourselves in the middle of nowhere?" Aunt Flo asked, not looking suspicious, but looking like she thought Hitomi and Van were both incredibly stupid.

"We hiked, and drove around and saw the country. You know, that sort of thing," Hitomi answered.

"So," Eries started, being less than her usual dignified self, "did_ anything_ happen?"

Hitomi nearly choked on her food. "What do you mean?" she asked, unintentionally blushing.

"Something _did _happen. What? Spill," Eries said coaxingly. "Did Van decide to forget all about his moon girl and go for you instead?"

"That isn't what happened," Hitomi said honestly. "We're just friends, and we had a nice time together," Hitomi proceeded, dishonestly.

"Like I'm gonna believe that," Eries said. "A guy and a girl can't hang out for so long in such closed quarters like that without something going on. I mean when Allen and I …" she abruptly stopped talking, and turned away herself, looking very red.

"So, what happened, Eries?" Hitomi laughed. "Did something happen between you and Allen? And you always act like you hate him so much."

"Fine, fine, fine, so nothing happened between you and Van," Eries conceded.

Hitomi had considered letting Van come up with whatever excuse tickled his fancy, but just now an idea came into her head as to what she could tell Eries and Aunt Flo. It was a believable lie, and she didn't want to miss the opportunity.

"Actually," Hitomi started. "He took me to go see her – his moon girl. She was vacationing at the lake and we spent most of the time stalking her. He just didn't want to go alone so, he took me along with him, so he wouldn't be a loner."

Aunt Flo was the one who looked shocked now and she immediately started quizzing Hitomi. "You saw her? The girl my Van is in love with? What does she look like?"

"She wasn't as pretty as I thought she'd be from his description," Hitomi said. "I guess he likes her for her personality. I guess I should be impressed that he's not shallow. I was expecting a real stunner, but she was just ordinary."

"Did she seem like a nice girl?" Aunt Flo persisted.

"Sure," Hitomi said, shrugging her shoulders. "But, now I understand why Van is so hesitant to approach her. She sort of has a boyfriend, and he was … wow! He was really attractive. I wanted to go hit on him myself and see if I could cause some trouble, but Van wouldn't let me. He's waiting for them to break up on their own. That's why he's progressing so slowly with her. I hope they don't get married or anything. Van would be an absolute mess. I'm sorry though. Most of the trip was actually really boring and he talked about her non-stop. I was so relieved when he left just now with Gaddes. If he said one more word about her, I was gonna go postal."

After that conversation, Eries and Aunt Flo seemed unconcerned with the state of things between Hitomi and Van. Hitomi phoned him on her cell when she had a moment alone and told him what she'd done.

"Great," he said. "Now I seem like lovesick idiot."

"I thought it was a great way to brush them off. Plus, you didn't give me any ideas before you left and I was alone with them and had to defend myself."

He sighed. "I'm sorry Hitomi. It doesn't matter at all what you told them. As long as they bought it, I wouldn't have cared if you'd told them I'd taken you to the North Pole and was secretly Santa Claus."

"You sound unusually bitter," she commented.

"Do I? I'm sorry. Today has been unusually frustrating, and it's only going to get worse. I probably won't be back there until around ten. I have to go now. Thanks for letting me know what you told them, now I can play along. Bye."

"Bye," Hitomi said, turning off the phone.

They were back to reality and Hitomi sure felt it. This was the same way it had been when she lived in the attic of his house. She only got to see him briefly each day and then he was off. It wasn't that she had to have him by her side every minute of every day; she was just left feeling unsatisfied.

When they had been on their honeymoon they had spent hours together. Walking through the woods and mountain trails holding hands. They had fed each other fruit and messed up perfectly made beds. On the whole it had been the best time of her life and now they were really back to the real world. She couldn't even confess that he was her husband.

This was going to be much harder than she thought.

* * *

It was after ten that night when Van and Gaddes finally rolled into the farm driveway. Van came in and collapsed in a chair like a sack of potatoes while Gaddes came in to wish everyone a good night – especially Eries – and then headed out again.

What had happened between those two while they were away?

"Is your leg still bothering you, Van?" Aunt Flo asked.

"Nah," he said, forcing himself to his feet. "I've got to go make one more phone call. Mind if I use your phone Auntie?"

"No, but have you had anything to eat? You look bushed."

"I am, but who cares? I've been slacking off for weeks and now I've got to get back to work, in a really big way." He picked up the cordless phone and headed for the doorway. "Don't follow me, Auntie," he said when Aunt Flo rose. "I've really got to make this call in private."

Van seldom made a big deal about who he was phoning or about the reason he was calling. He gave Hitomi a look before he staggered out of the room. It was a look unlike anything Hitomi had ever seen. What was the problem? He looked like he was about to do something drastic, something dangerous, and totally uncalled for. Hitomi rushed to her feet to follow him, but Aunt Flo grabbed Hitomi's wrist and stopped her.

"Just give the boy some space to do what he's got to do," she said.

"I'm gonna go to bed," Hitomi said, shaking off Aunt Flo's hands.

Aunt Flo hung onto her tightly, and whispered into her ear. "Even though you said all that this afternoon, it still looks to me like you like Van a great deal. You're going to have to let it go. He may have let you live at his house and taken you on this little trip, but those things don't mean that he's going to give up on his moon girl. He shouldn't give up on her. It's the only way he has a chance to live happily. Try to understand, and let him go."

"I really am going to go to bed," Hitomi said, her feelings hurt and her blood boiling. "I won't bother Van. I need some sleep."

Aunt Flo let her go and Hitomi left the room angry. She could tell that the woman meant well. She was only trying to do Hitomi a favour, and stop her from getting her feelings hurt, but that didn't change what the truth was. It was stupid, but because of his aunt's words, she felt like she wasn't accepted by his family – and _that_ made a huge difference to her.

Hitomi looked down at her right ring finger, where Van's ring sat. This was only going to get worse from here.

But even though the problem with their secret wedding was something weighing down on Hitomi's mind, her conscious was much heavier laden. She had promised that Van would to go to The Voltage Room, and the knowledge that she had done that was messing her up far more than anything.

She _had_ to be alone.

This was all her fault. If she hadn't promised then Van wouldn't have to go to The Voltage Room the next day. She felt terrible as she stalked back and forth in the little bedroom Aunt Flo had given her in the basement. Van looked terrible. Hitomi was certain that he knew something about his meeting with Folken the next day that he simply wasn't telling her.

She also kept rehearsing her conversation with Dilandau to see where she'd gone wrong. There had to have been a way to get those guys back without making that promise, Hitomi just didn't know what her options were. At the time, when Dilandau was yelling at her, she felt like she had no choice. He made her feel that way so he could have what he wanted. Watch, they had probably killed all of them before she even made that promise.

When Hitomi thought that, she felt even sicker.

She began unpacking her clothes and hanging them up in the little closet that was only a rack hung up on the wall with no doors. She pulled out her wedding dress and examined it. The staples had held up better than she thought it would. Then she sat down on her bed and cried.

This was all her fault.

Hitomi hung up the dress and mindlessly cleaned the bedroom to perfection. It wasn't dirty when she came in, but she had made a mess taking out all the things to remind her of the time she and Van had spent together. She got into bed and read the letter he wrote her over and over until she looked at the clock and saw that it was after midnight. Then she switched the light off and rolled onto her side.

This was the first night she had not slept with Van in weeks. She had never felt that a single bed was depressing before, but she did now. Her huddled form filled the bed quite adequately, and Van was not even on the same floor as her. He had lived here when he was a boy and still occupied his old bedroom – directly above her. She wanted to get up and bang on the ceiling to let him know she was thinking about him or something … It was tempting to sneak out of bed and join him in his room, but his room was adjacent to Aunt Flo's and Hitomi didn't want to risk discovery.

Hitomi couldn't sleep. She just lay awake and thought about Van and how depressing their married life was going to be when they had to spend each night away from each other.

But then her door creaked open.

"Hitomi," Van drawled quietly. "Are you awake?"

"Yes," Hitomi said excitedly.

"Don't make any noise," he said, coming over to the side of the bed.

"What about your aunt?" Hitomi asked, breathlessly, so excited that he had come.

"That's why I said you shouldn't make any noise. If we wake her, I'll take the consequences, but I can't not be with you tonight."

* * *

Author's Notes: Aw! Isn't Van sweet? He's so the kind of guy who would ... 

Special thanks to Kat for beta reading and for everyone who reads and reviews! You guys rock my world! Once again the forum is open on my profile page for anyone who is interested and I opened a new forum for ... well, you can just check it out. Anyway, CHEERS! Hope you guys are all having a great weekend.


	7. The Voltage Room

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I was rewatching it the other day. Man! It is SO one of the great ones.

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**Chapter Six**

**The Voltage Room**

Van snuck out of Hitomi's room and back to his own sometime in the night. Hitomi didn't know exactly when.

Now, she sat at the breakfast table with Eries and Aunt Flo. Apparently, Van was allowed to sleep in, even though Hitomi and Eries were both woken up with thunderous banging on their bedroom doors.

"So, that's where Van picked up that habit," Hitomi thought, as she roused herself. That was how Van liked to wake her up, too. Some husbands woke their wives up with kisses, but Van always banged on things.

Aunt Flo said that Van was very tired and he needed all his strength for the day, but the girls had to be up to help pick squash in the garden. Aunt Flo didn't let people stay for free. Eries said that she'd been working in the garden and with the chickens nearly every day since Van and Hitomi went on their trip, but that she liked it and that it would be nice to have someone else work with them. Besides, Eries couldn't go back to the club; the Dragon Slayers knew she worked there.

So, there was Hitomi, full of anxiety, standing in a muddy and dry garden by turns, packing irrigation sprinklers. She didn't find the work at all steadying, and in fact was about to scream at the top of her lungs because of her ultimate frustration. You'd think she was a speed demon at how the slowness of the morning irritated her.

Finally, when it was time for lunch she got to go in the house and see Van. He had woken up and was making himself a sandwich on the counter. "Morning Hitomi. Where are Eries and Auntie?"

"They're coming," she said, stepping cautiously out of the gumboots Auntie had lent her, while balancing herself with both hands on the walls.

"Good," he said, coming towards her and catching her in a passionate embrace.

"Van. They're going to see us."

"I don't care," he said, kissing her again.

He seemed to know the right time to back off, because he did before they came up the back steps. How did he know when to do that? But all the same, Hitomi was surprised he took so many chances considering that he had been the one to make her promise she wouldn't tell anyone.

"What are you doing this afternoon?" Aunt Flo asked Van as they were all sitting at the table again.

"I need to go see the doctor to get my leg re-wrapped," he explained, still looking as suicidal as he had the day before.

"Did you have it looked at while you were away?" she asked anxiously.

"Yeah," Van lied.

"And it's healing properly?"

"Yeah. Anyway, I need to be able to drive Miguel's car to The Voltage Room, so I need this cast off. The good doctor will bandage it and I can stop being an invalid."

"But what if it's not healed properly?" Aunt Flo continued.

"It was doing fine when I checked on it last. I'm sure I'm healing normally. Besides, there is no way I'm limping to go see the Dragon Slayers. I'd feel at a disadvantage before we even started. Auntie, try to understand." Then he turned to Hitomi and asked her, "Hey, Hitomi, can you drive me to the doctor's?"

"I'm driving you," Aunt Flo interjected quite fiercely. "I haven't had a chance to talk to you since you got back yesterday."

"I know, Auntie. I just thought you were working on your garden. Besides, I'll be back tonight, so can't it wait until then?"

"You will?" she asked him uncertainly, like she didn't believe him for one second. "You think you'll be able to square things off with Dilandau and Folken today without any hassle, and you'll be back before supper? Why of all the stupid …"

"Don't!" Van warned her, raising his hand to stop her from speaking. "Don't underestimate me. I'm not sure you have any idea what I'm capable of doing, or of how far I'm willing to go. If I say I'll be back tonight, you'll just have to trust me." He paused, and then proceeded more tactfully, "Besides, after I go to the doctor, I want to come back here and get cleaned up. I promise we'll have a chance to talk before I go. Will that satisfy you?"

"But you're still going to take Hitomi?"

"Yeah, if she'll come," Van said, looking at Hitomi for her consent.

Hitomi nodded and went back to eating her food. She wanted to make it look like she didn't care whether Van asked her to take him or not, but she was very hung up on what his aunt had said. His aunt didn't think Van would be back that night. She probably knew him better than anyone, and she didn't think he would be able to walk away. This terrified Hitomi more than anything else that had been said.

So, when they finished eating, Van and Hitomi got in his convertible again and headed out to the doctor's office.

"He's not really going to dress it, is he?" Hitomi asked when they were alone. "He knows it's healed, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, he knows, but he didn't tell my aunt. He said he just stitched me up without saying a word to her about how weird it was. I haven't decided whether or not I'm going to confide in her or not. The less she knows about me the safer she is. Anyway, we're just going to go drop off the cast."

"You look terrible, Van. Please tell me what's bothering you. You don't have to bear this alone," she said, urging him to confide in her.

"You're sweet, Hitomi. I'm fine. Sure, I'm a little worried about what Folken is going to ask me to do in exchange for Allen and the other's safety, but I'm sure I'll be able to deal with it. Trust me, okay?"

Even though that was what Van said, Hitomi couldn't shake the feeling that there was a lot more to it than that. There was something he wasn't telling her; something he wasn't going to tell her.

* * *

Van and Gaddes planned to head to The Voltage room at around five o'clock that afternoon. Van said they had to take driving time into account and he'd rather get there when it was still light out.

He hugged and kissed Hitomi privately before Gaddes got there. It wasn't really a very dramatic moment, because he kept insisting that nothing horrible was going to happen and that he would surely be coming back that evening. The kiss was just for luck.

But he and Aunt Flo shut themselves up in the den for over an hour before Aunt Flo emerged, looking … Hitomi didn't know how to say it … controlled. Whatever Van had told her, she didn't like it one bit. Hitomi disliked that he was more honest with his aunt than he was with her, but she couldn't do anything about it. He just kept saying that he didn't want her to worry. Hitomi couldn't find the words to explain that it made her worry much more when he kept secrets. Then she didn't know what to expect. The truth might have been easier to handle than the mystery.

Merle phoned as well and kept Van on the phone for a solid half-hour before he convinced her not to leave work and drive out to the farm to see him. He said over and over again that everyone could come see them when he brought Allen and the others back.

At last, Gaddes came and Van drove Miguel's orange car out of the barn and into the driveway. He didn't say a special good-bye to anyone, but simply waved from the car and yelled to the house that they were leaving. Hitomi, Aunt Flo and Eries stood on the front porch to see them off. Gaddes was behind the wheel of Van's convertible and Van was in the drivers' seat of Miguel's beast.

Hitomi wanted to cry; she had so many pent up emotions, but found that she couldn't. Instead, she was just wired beyond all reason and stalked back and forth on the veranda like a caged animal.

As Van backed up the car, but before he pulled away, he gave Hitomi one last look, one last wave that was just for her, and as he turned his head away from her – she cracked.

This was all her fault!

Once they were gone, Aunt Flo asked Eries to come into the house to help her make dinner, and they left Hitomi out on the porch.

Hitomi felt like her heart was going to break. Her heart was beating like a power tool that had gone out of control. It was good that the women left her alone, because soon she began to breathe foggy ice. She wasn't able to manage her power for a few minutes and she accidentally made herself a pair of white crystal gloves for her hands. She hoped Van would come back quickly and resolved that she wouldn't leave the porch until he _was_ back.

She may have paced and sat on the steps over and over by turns for an hour or maybe twenty minutes. Her hands melted and she was prepared to wait all night for Van, when a car pulled up in the driveway. Hitomi looked and then she stared. She recognized the car, but she still couldn't believe who she saw get out of the car and approach her.

It was her father!

* * *

The next few hours were to be a different kind of hell, a different kind of misery than any other Hitomi had ever experienced. They were like a nightmare that a person just couldn't wake up from. When one finally did wake up, they were cold, clammy, and profoundly grateful that their nightmare had not been real. But Hitomi's nightmare was very real, and if she had acted irresponsibly in the past she was going to pay dearly for it this one night. Indeed, for the rest of her life.

"Hitomi!" her father called, recognizing her and rushing towards her. "Hitomi!" he said again, catching her in his arms. "We thought you were dead! I'm so happy to see you."

Suddenly, Hitomi was very aware that she had done a very cruel thing not contacting her parents at all to let them know she was okay. She hugged her father back and apologized. "I'm fine, Dad. I'm so sorry that I didn't call you. A lot has happened and I … I'm really sorry."

"It's fine, now," he said, being very forgiving in his joy that his daughter was safe. "We've got to take you home. Come on. Your mother is very anxious to see you. You don't know what she's been though. This nightmare is over now. Let's get you home."

"Home?" Hitomi said absently. "Home? I can't go home. I don't live there anymore. I can't go home."

It was then that Aunt Flo and Eries came out onto the step. They had bags in their hands – Hitomi's bags. They were packed. What was going on?

"Thank you for coming, Mr. Kanzaki," Aunt Flo was saying, extending her hand and apologizing to her father. "I'm sorry we've kept Hitomi so long. It was definitely a mistake on our part. Please come into the house and let me explain what happened."

"Please do," Hitomi's father said, still too happy to see Hitomi to truly be thinking straight.

In the living room, Aunt Flo started, "Hitomi was kidnapped, but my nephew Van saved her." Then she explained the situation as sensibly as possible, leaving many gaps in the story saying, "Hitomi can tell you more about that, I'm sure."

During this oration, Hitomi finally understood what was happening, and she wasn't at all sure how to take it. She was being literally thrown out of Aunt Flo's house and she was being sent back home to live with her parents. She conceded very quickly that she should have done something to contact her parents when Eries told her to, before she and Van went on their vacation, but had been so caught up in discovering her own abilities and her love for Van that she hadn't given it any serious thought. She hadn't even considered it.

And now she was going to pay for it.

Aunt Flo's conversation with her father was not in any way a good thing. She didn't disguise the fact that Hitomi had deliberately stayed away and had purposely left her parents to worry. Even though her father had been very forgiving to begin with, once Aunt Flo made it clear what happened, he was livid. He got on his cell phone immediately and talked to a police officer about the state of things. It was going to be on the news and in the papers – perhaps across the country – and it was going to be a huge scandal.

Hitomi wanted to hide her head in the dirt.

Then he called Hitomi's mother, and explained things to her over the phone. His lips were white as he spoke and his sentences were short. Her father was never going to trust her again. That much was clear. Hitomi had never accurately guessed the impact her recklessness and choice was going to have on her family life. She simply thought that she was doing what was best for them by staying away. Now she saw that her father was never going to see it that way. It was the way Aunt Flo described the situation. It didn't seem that she was intentionally trying to cause a great deal of trouble. She just didn't know how to put it to her father in a way that would help him understand. Van would have been more tactful … man alive! _She _would have been more tactful if she'd be given the chance to explain herself, but now the damage was done, and a rift was springing up between herself and her father. At the tender age of eighteen Hitomi didn't believe it was something that could ever be mended.

When Aunt Flo had explained everything, Hitomi's father practically took her by the ear and hauled her out to the car bodily. Hitomi wanted to beg Aunt Flo not to do this to her, but she knew it was pointless. Hitomi thought she was doing this under Van's direction. _That _could have been what they had been talking about in the den!

Her father didn't spare her either once she was in the car alone with him – he was ripping her to shreds.

"I've said it ten times by now, Dad. The Dragon Slayers were after me. If I had gone home then, they would have come after you and mom and Marlene."

"Dragon Slayers? I'm starting to think that this was all just a prank that you used to run away with that boy – Van."

"Dad, you know me. I wouldn't do something like that!" Hitomi hollered.

"I thought I did know you, but my child would have found a way to stop her mother and father from worrying about her if she was really okay. You obviously have no clue what we have been though on your account."

"Stop being so pig-headed," Hitomi countered. "They killed Millerna. I agree completely that I should have done something, but it seemed too dangerous at the time, and I really didn't want anyone else to die. And you're being too hard on Van," she said, unconsciously defending him, even though she wanted to ring his neck. "He saved me. Try to understand that he is NOT my boyfriend, and that he was only trying to save my life."

"That's not what he told me," her father bellowed.

"You met him?" Hitomi exclaimed. "You didn't say that when we were inside."

"Of course I met him. He's the one who came to the apartment to get your picture of Millerna," her father said. "He phoned me last night and told me that I could come pick you up today. That he would have saved you from them - the Dragon Slayers - by now, but that wasn't true, was it? He just wanted to run around with you in the country and wait until the last possible moment before giving you back."

Hitomi closed her eyes in pain as she realized exactly what Van had done. When he took the phone the night before and went sulking off by himself, he had phoned her father!

Her dad explained the timeline and Hitomi realized that Van planned to turn her over to her parents this very day before they went on vacation, before they got married, and before he went to The Voltage Room.

"That bastard!" Hitomi cursed, angry as hell. It really was a good thing Van was nowhere near her then, because she was ready to have at him without holding back. She felt like she had never been so betrayed by someone who claimed to love her. The media circus to follow, the reporters, and what the Dragon Slayers would see made Hitomi's skin crawl. Oh, she hated Van. "That bastard!" she said to herself inwardly at least fifty times as her father drove the two of them back to the city.

"He told me you were his girlfriend and that the drug lords kidnapped you out of spite," her father said, finishing up.

Hitomi sighed and tried to get control of her temper. Van sure did tell a lot of tall tales all over the place. It was difficult to keep up with him. "I _was _kidnapped by gangsters. I was never Van's girlfriend."

"Hitomi," her father said patiently through gritted teeth. "You have to give up on that boy and those people. I never want you to talk to them again. If they're causing you trouble than we need to end it, sever your ties to them. You are never to speak to one of those people – the Abaharaki again. Do you understand me?"

"I'm way ahead of you, Dad, but Van managed to get me out of trouble, so that's good enough, isn't it?"

Apparently, it wasn't good enough, and Hitomi was getting too tired to quarrel with her father anymore. Before she knew what she was doing she began to promise him all kinds of things in order to smooth things over with him. She'd never seen him so angry. He was not a mean spirited person, and Hitomi hated to argue with him. Before she got out of the car, she was under the impression that she was to be a prisoner in her parents' home until they saw fit to let her go. Her head ached and she was so brutally pissed off with Van that she couldn't think about what her father was telling her anymore.

When her father finally stopped the car it was outside a building she had never seen before. It was then that her dad explained to her that they had moved while she'd been away for those four months. Apparently, they didn't feel safe in their old building because of what happened with Hitomi and they'd moved to a building with much tighter security in a classier part of the city. It was smaller and she'd have to share a room with Marlene. They also decided that the public school the two girls went to was not good enough either and since Hitomi had not finished her last semester of grade twelve, she was to attend a private school with Marlene.

It wasn't until that moment that Van's true intentions came home to Hitomi. That was it! He wanted her to finish high school and if they went about it this way, they could kill several birds with one stone. Hitomi could ease the minds of her parents by living with them for another five months, at the very least, she could finish high school, and their secret would remain a very hidden – that they were married. It also re-injected her into society with relatively little inconvenience to anyone, and her scandal would be a much smaller story than if they were to bust the Dragon Slayers without proof. It was a win/win situation for everyone, except that she and Van wouldn't be together.

When Hitomi understood Van's reasoning, she didn't feel any better. In fact, she was even madder. He could have confided in her, instead of sneaking around and making plans with Aunt Flo and her father behind her back.

Hitomi and her father went in and up the elevator to the fourth floor and Hitomi did her best to brace herself for what she would inevitably get from her mother and sister, but as she saw her reflection in the wall mirror in the elevator, Hitomi made another discovery.

Van was not coming back, not to his Aunt's house that night or anywhere else. He had given himself up to the Dragon Slayers in exchange for those four boys. He had no plan to get away. He was simply going to take whatever deal Folken had in mind to get them back – that was his plan. Hitomi had been the one to promise he would go, and he went, just as she'd promised … and he wasn't coming back.

* * *

Author's Notes: A very fine thank you to Kat for beta reading and for everyone who reads and reviews. I'm so thankful for your encouragement, I can't tell you. And thank you to everyone who goes to my forum and comments. It's seriously so fun for me. I've never had so much fun with my writing before. All of this makes me so happy. Thanks everyone - YOU RULE! 

Okay, so that completes chapter six, and concludes Van's surprise. So now everyone knows exactly how much Van has totally screwed Hitomi over, but never fear, I wouldn't do this if it didn't open an unexplainably LARGE window for plot opportunities and what I've got lined up is FANTASTIC (if I do say so myself). So, nobody get so nervous they give up. The journey to the happily ever after is going to totally kick. It's all about female empowerment, and I love female empowerment, so hopefully this will be as fun for all of you as I found it. Seriously, it's going to totally kick.


	8. Chain Reaction

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. But I'm trying to think up a name for the series, so if this is book two ...

* * *

**Chapter Seven**

**Chain Reactions**

**Mother's Reaction Part I**

Hitomi's mother seemed to be far more understanding of her absence than Hitomi had even cared to dream. Her father made it sound like her mother had been suffering unspeakable torment at the absence of her daughter, but her mother seemed to understand. Hitomi didn't know how much her mother knew about her gift, and her ability to use ice, or Hitomi's aunt who she had inherited the ability from. However, it was obvious that her mother knew something.

"Oh, leave her alone, Honey," her mother implored her father when everything had been said at home. "Akira was always doing crazy things like this too. It's in Hitomi's blood to be a little wild."

"Now is not the time to bring up your sister, Dear. I really don't see what she has to do with it, and nor do I think it's appropriate to let Hitomi think that this kind of behaviour is all right."

"But Hitomi doesn't act like this all the time. This was really just an isolated incident. Granted, it was a very serious one, but …"

"I'm not letting up," he said, not angry any more now that he had his dear wife to pacify him. "But Hitomi made me some promises while we were driving home, and I expect her to keep them."

"Of course," her mother assented, and then managed to give Hitomi another glance that indicated that her mother at least understood the heart of what happened rather than the details.

* * *

**Marlene's Reaction Part I**

When Hitomi went into her new bedroom, she saw that Marlene had not gotten totally comfortable in the space yet. There were boxes of Hitomi's things piled up beside her bed, and there were no posters up on the walls yet.

"Did you miss me, Little Sis?" Hitomi asked, trying to resume their past relationship, but feeling that it was going to be difficult under the circumstances.

Marlene lay on her bed, her mountains of blonde hair surrounding her and seeming to smother her. "What happened to you Hitomi?" she asked, with questing eyes. "What happened to you while you were away? You're different."

Hitomi was about as likely to tell Marlene anything serious as to turn the room into an ice palace for her sister's amusement. Instead, she looked around the room with more interest. "So, there's just the one closet, eh? Looks like I'm going to have to throw out a bunch of stuff if we're going to fit into this little room together. Well, we've still got two more weeks until school starts, so I guess I have time to start pitching things." Hitomi wanted to be alone just now, and it was brutal that she was going to be cooped up with her sister, but it couldn't be helped. Besides, she didn't want her sister to know that she was a mess, and she didn't want to need Marlene's reassurance, so she needed to feign cheerfulness. "It's nice to be home," she lied, thinking about what a rip off it was that she had to share a room with her sister instead of with her husband. Hitomi suddenly bit her lip and turned her back on Marlene. She was going to come unglued.

"Dad took me to our new school last week. It looks really nice. We have to wear uniforms …"

"Do we? That should be interesting," Hitomi said, cutting her sister off abruptly and without realizing it. She turned away from Marlene and seized one of her bags and opened it with gusto. She had to do something with her hands in order to stop herself from cracking.

The first thing she pulled out was her wedding dress.

"Wow!" Marlene exclaimed, getting up to get a better look at it. "You _bought _that? And you didn't make it sound like you had any fun."

"You call this fun?" Hitomi commented, clearing a part in the closet for her clothes. "This is the middle, so this is my half, okay?" Hitomi said, changing the subject. She couldn't talk to Marlene about how special that dress was to her.

"No really. What are you doing with a dress like that?"

"It was a present, okay? I just didn't get much of a chance to wear it. I hope I get another chance before it's hopelessly out of fashion," she said, withdrawing from her sister intentionally. She headed back for her bag.

All of Hitomi's clothes were pretty much brand new. She'd ruined some things in her travels with Van around Lake Astral, but most of it had hardly been worn. She pulled out Van's boxer shorts and found she could contain herself no longer. Where was he right now? And what was happening? She wanted to get on the phone and call Eries to find out what happened. Was Van able to bring the boys home? Did he come back at all? But she couldn't, she'd promised her father that she wouldn't have anything to do with the Abaharaki from now on.

"What's wrong Hitomi?" Marlene asked quickly when she saw the distraught expression on Hitomi's face.

"I'm just very worried about a dear friend of mine," Hitomi said, pulling her khaki shorts right off in order to put Van's boxers on. They had been folded funny and had lots of creases in them. "Marlene," Hitomi said quietly. "I'm really happy to see you, but I really need to be alone right now. If you don't mind, I'd just like to be alone."

"But Hitomi …" Marlene said, looking concerned and interested.

Hitomi went over to Marlene and put her hand on her shoulder. "Would it be all right if I was alone for a few minutes?"

Marlene assented and left the room, although, if Hitomi had noticed, she would have seen resentment on Marlene's face for being brushed aside so completely when Hitomi had only just gotten there.

* * *

**Hitomi's Reaction Part I**

Only when Marlene had shut the door behind her did Hitomi feel safe enough to throw herself down onto her old bed and cry as much as she wanted to.

It was a relief to cry, but at the same time pointless and frustrating. Soon Hitomi was brushing off her tears and searching her bags fervently for the cell phone Van had given her. After searching her bags thoroughly, it was clear that it was not there, but she found a large envelope and sat down cross-legged on the bed to open it. It was not something that had been with her original possessions.

* * *

**Van's Reaction**

She opened it and pulled the contents out, spreading it out so she could see everything. There was their wedding certificate, a credit card, the framed picture of herself and Millerna, accompanied by a letter from Van's bank, and a letter from Van himself. It read:

_Dear Hitomi,_

_I know you're probably livid with me if you're reading this. I wish I had a better explanation than the one I have. So, instead, I'm going to tell you what to do, and hope wildly that you'll understand my reasons enough to stay smart. And I know you're smart, Hitomi._

_I asked Aunt Flo to send you home. I want you to finish high school. Not only that, but I really believe in my heart that this is the best course though it tears me in half to be separated from you. I don't think I have much choice about that right now._

_You're my wife and I've left you with access to all our finances, hence the credit card. Besides, I thought I ought to get you one of your own before my wallet had a perpetual bare spot. Aunt Flo is in charge of the sale of my property in the city. She doesn't know that we're married. I haven't told her. I've kept that end of our bargain. I've told her what conditions have to be met for me to approve of a sale, so that's one less thing for you to worry about._

_I'd also like you to open a safety deposit box at a bank to house our marriage certificate, and anything else that is special to us. It would be terrible if someone found us out because of carelessness, so please do this as soon as possible._

_I'm not sure how things are going to go tonight, but if my car isn't wrecked then you're free to take it and use it if you want it. You can pick it up as soon as tomorrow. I've told Auntie that I'm giving it to you if I don't come back. I doubt very much that Folken will let me leave tonight. Sorry I couldn't tell you when we were alone what he wants from me, and even now, I can't write it to you. Please trust me. I'll come back._

_I'm deeply sorry, but this is the best I can do for you right now. Gaddes is here now and I have to go. I know I'm probably forgetting to tell you all kinds of things, but I can't think straight today. _

_Things are going to be funny between us for the next little while. Try to bear it the best you can. This is what I meant by 'hard days' when I asked you to marry me. Always do what you think is best, paddle in the direction you want to go, and I'll try my best to be near you as soon as I can._

_I love you._

_Van._

_P.S. When I broke into your parents' apartment I burnt a hole through your front door. I wasn't expecting your father to catch me. In any case, I told him I'd pay him back for the damages. Will you take care of this for me, Hitomi? _

**

* * *

**

**The Family's Reaction**

In the morning, Hitomi sat at the breakfast table with her parents and Marlene. Oddly enough, it was more comfortable here than it had been with Aunt Flo and Eries. This was a lot more comfortable. Hitomi leaned back in her chair and drank a mug of milk like that morning was the most relaxed day of the year.

She had cried herself to sleep the night before, but somehow in her sleep she had a very strong impression that Van was okay and he wanted her to chill out. She had woken up in the morning feeling mellow and calm. Van promised he would be back as soon as he could and she believed him. No more cursing him in her head, she promised herself. He was just trying to do the best he could with what he had, and she had to respect that. He hadn't been angry with her for promising that he would go to The Voltage Room. In fact, he had never even mentioned it to her. She would believe in his love for her and trust his abilities. All she had to do was get through these next four and a half months of school unscathed.

She could do it. Hitomi was a powerhouse.

She leaned across the table to pick up the milk jug to pour herself another glass when Marlene was suddenly startled and nearly jumped in her seat.

"What?" Hitomi asked.

"What's on your arm?" Marlene exclaimed.

Hitomi had been wearing a T-shirt. The sleeve hit her mid upper arm, so the dragon's tail slid down her arm and was visible. She unintentionally covered her arm with her other hand and rolled her eyes. She hadn't even thought about her parents' reaction to her having a tattoo.

"What is it Hitomi?" her father persisted.

She realized again that her relationship with her father was clearly in the toilet and uncovered her arm to show her tattoo. There was no point hiding what couldn't be hid anyway. The dragon curled its claw around the moon and sat on its haunches as always. The tail dripped downwards as it always would, as well. Her dad was never going to get over this.

"When did you have that done?" he questioned icily.

"About two months ago," Hitomi admitted, pulling her shirt down and resuming eating.

"Ah," her mother said, not looking disturbed at all. "Your Aunt Akira had a tattoo as well."

"Really?" Hitomi burst, almost rising to her feet. She had forgotten to ask her mother if she knew about her aunt's ability. Did she know what her symbol was? What were her elements? "What was Aunt Akira's tattoo of?"

Her mother shook her head in sort of a dreamy way. "I'm sorry, Dear. I never saw it. I only knew she had it done because I met her one day after she was having it touched up. I accidentally bumped her, and she winced. Of course, I was concerned that I had really hurt her, but she said that it was nothing and explained that she had a tattoo."

"But she didn't let you see it?"

"No. It was on her hip, you see, and we were in public. Besides, she was always quite secretive. It's not really the kind of thing she would have confided in me. She always had her own world, and …"

"Why does every conversation turn towards Akira lately? Hitomi, what possessed you to get a tattoo?" her father demanded.

"Does it really bother you, dad?"

"It's massive. Your school uniform isn't going to cover that up. I'll bet that school has rules about these things. I should call the school," he said, sounding very troubled.

"That's fine. I can go to public school, instead. I'm only there for one more semester anyway, so it's okay, but call the school if it makes you feel better," Hitomi said, trying desperately not to be on the defensive. If she was difficult, then her father would be even more worried about her and their relationship would get worse.

"You're going to private school," he retorted sternly. "There is no way I'm taking the chance of something else happening to my … I'm going to go call the school." He left the table in a huff.

"So," Hitomi said leaning forward. "Mom, tell me about Aunt Akira. I never knew her very well. I'd love to learn more about her."

"Sorry Hitomi," her mother said pensively. "I don't think _anyone_ knew her very well. She was a very solitary creature. She didn't make friends easily, and she didn't confide in me much, even though we were sisters. I wish I could explain better. She really wasn't like any other person I have ever met. My mother used to say that she was like my great uncle, but I never knew him."

"Aw. Too bad grandma isn't alive or I'd like to ask her some questions too," Hitomi said.

"Would you?" her mother said with a secret smile. "Hitomi, have you stumbled over the family secret."

"And what family secret would that be?" Hitomi asked evasively.

"Our family has a secret?" Marlene interrupted.

Her mother suddenly frowned and looked at Hitomi more carefully. "So, you're not going to tell me either?"

"There's nothing to tell," Hitomi said, rising from the table. She didn't want Marlene to hear their conversation, but Hitomi was going to talk to her mother about this as soon as possible. Marlene was not to be involved. Van lied about Folken, but she was certain Marlene would have been involved in this sooner if she had the same abilities. Dilandau would have come after her or something. Hitomi just needed to be alone with her mother.

Hitomi's father suddenly came back into the dining room and told Hitomi that the school didn't have any rules about tattoos, but that she had better do her best to cover it up, so that she'd fit in with the other kids. Apparently, she could have uniforms with long sleeves.

"Oh goodie," Hitomi thought coarsely, and turned to head towards her bedroom. There was still a lot of work that needed to be done in there.

"Oh, and Hitomi," her father continued.

"Yeah?"

"You have to go to a uniform fitting tomorrow afternoon."

She winced. This was going to be brutal. "Okay, where is it? If I'm gonna take the bus then I'd better be prepared."

"I'm not letting you take the bus. You're taking the car and Marlene."

"Hasn't Marlene already had her fitting?"

"Yes," her dad said.

"You're sending her with me as my babysitter?" Hitomi asked, totally stunned.

He didn't answer, but the expression on his face indicated that that was the case. She thought about being outraged, but she had made a ludicrous promise that she would do everything he asked her to do without comment or attitude.

"All right," Hitomi said, not allowing herself to be defeated. She only had to do this for five and a half months and then she was out of here. "We'll have fun. We'll get ice cream, too."

"Are you making fun of me, Young Lady?" her dad asked darkly. This wasn't his personality. He was worried sick and this was the only way he knew how to deal.

Hitomi recognized this and tried her best not to step on his toes. "No, I'm trying to have a positive attitude. That was part of our agreement, and I really will put up with anything to earn your trust again."

He hugged her and let her go to her room

**

* * *

**

**Marlene's Reaction Part II**

The next day Hitomi took Marlene to the fitting. There were a couple of other girls from their new school who came in just after them to be measured as well. It was at this moment that it hit Hitomi that she was going to be lumped in with the kids a grade younger than her. Everyone her age graduated last year.

Urgh! It was going to be a chant in her head. _Five and a half more months, five and a half more months …_

After that, Hitomi was trying to think that she could have a future with Van. She didn't know how things had worked out, but she had to believe that things were all right. If she didn't believe in him, then she couldn't accomplish anything and she would be paralyzed with worry for Van.

After the fitting, she took her sister to the bank – Van's bank.

"What are we doing here?" Marlene asked skeptically.

"I have an account here," Hitomi told her.

"But you never used to have an account here, did you?"

"No. Do you want to come in with me, or do you want to wait in the car?" Hitomi really didn't care what the answer to this question was. No matter what her sister said, she wasn't going to let her anywhere near her discussion with the teller.

Marlene came in with her.

Hitomi stood at the counter and filled out the necessary papers, and a safety deposit box was assigned to her. In went the marriage certificate, the notes Van had written her, the pictures they took of each other with a disposable camera; she dropped her wedding ring in with reservations, and thought about the necklace at her throat. No, she'd keep that. Van would want her to wear it.

She also withdrew a thousand dollars. She didn't know how much the door cost, but she thought she'd better have enough cash to pay for it. A thousand would be enough, wouldn't it?

When she came back, Marlene was looking bored and frustrated sitting in a blue padded chair by the door. Hitomi promptly abandoned the idea of taking her out to Aunt Flo's to find out what happened with Van. She had been thinking about it, but she saw immediately that it wasn't a good move. She didn't like to involve Marlene, especially since it involved breaking her promise to her father, and even so, it didn't look like Marlene would be able to handle much more.

"Ice cream?" Hitomi asked her sister when they were back in the car.

"No. Hitomi, I'm not a kid anymore. I'm in high school now. I even have a boyfriend, who I'm actually meeting later today, so could we just go home? Are you really this enthusiastic about hanging out with me? You never were before," Marlene said, adjusting a massive ring on her finger. When had she got that?

"I'll take you home. I just wanted to make this a little fun, since it's obviously not, but I want us to be friends."

"I repeat that you never wanted that before."

"I just don't want us to turn out like mom and Aunt Akira," she said, thinking of how little it seemed Akira had invited her mother into her world. Hitomi didn't want that with Marlene.

"What's your thing with Aunt Akira so suddenly? You were never close."

"I'm just like her," Hitomi said.

"No you're not! That's crazy. She wasn't like anyone. Our whole family thought she was nuts. Don't you remember?"

"I never thought of her that way. I was really sorry when she died."

"Can you only drive forty? The speed limit is fifty here. Get on with it. You think I want to be crammed in here in this heat. It's over thirty-five degrees outside. Just get on with it. I'm roasting." Marlene flicked on the air conditioning and turned decidedly to stare out the window.

Hitomi sighed. So, hanging out with Marlene wasn't going to be any fun. It looked to Hitomi like no one was going to enjoy this babysitting job.

* * *

**Hitomi's Reaction Part II**

Hitomi didn't get a look at Marlene's date when he came to pick her up. She was in the living room trying to find the family's photo albums, in specific the ones that had her mother's old pictures in them when he showed up. Besides, Marlene didn't seem inclined to introduce them.

Hitomi still hadn't got the opportunity to speak to her mother in private about Aunt Akira. Now that Marlene had left, Hitomi was alone in the apartment, and she had not been given permission to go anywhere (yet another infringement on her freedom). Now she had to have permission if she wanted to go somewhere. Both her parents were at work and wouldn't be back until later. So, she searched her parents' things looking for her mother's pictures.

At last, she found the one she was looking for; the collection of her mother's family pictures. There was Akira, with her tawny hair and green eyes. Hitomi flipped through the pictures of her. She never looked at the camera, but always seemed to be looking in a different direction. She'd be looking at the ground or the ceiling or off to the side. Hitomi tried to connect her expression to the reality of their elemental gifts, but she couldn't do it. She'd have to speak to her mother.

* * *

**Father's Reaction**

Surprisingly, her parents came home together, bringing cartons of Chinese food with them. Her mother asked where Marlene was, and Hitomi was about to answer that Marlene had gone on a date, when Marlene came in the front door.

"Where have you been, Sweetheart?" her mother asked her youngest daughter when she came in.

"Oh, I just ran down to the store. I wanted to get this," she said, holding up a teenager magazine named _Girl Spirit_.

So, Marlene was still reading that garbage. Well, Hitomi knew it wasn't up to her to influence nonsense out of her sister's head, but more importantly – Marlene had lied to her mother about where she'd been. Hitomi had heard the boy's voice in the entryway. A guy had definitely come to pick her up. Hitomi guessed that Marlene was smart enough to keep her parents out of her life. Their dad was probably pretty tough on Marlene now, so she had to live under the wire if she wanted to do anything normal. Well, it was Hitomi's fault that their dad had suddenly become so strict. She vowed that she wouldn't be a tattletale, but she was going to keep her eye on Marlene, just in case. She probably wasn't into anything dangerous, but it was still better to watch out.

When they sat down to eat, her father explained that he expected Hitomi to pick up the slack as far as cooking went until school started, since she would have plenty of time to prepare meals. Hitomi agreed easily. There was nothing to cooking. She had been cooking for Van, Chid and Miguel. She winked at her dad and told him she was a great cook.

"Oh, and dad, I forgot to ask you. Van told me that he wrecked the door to our old apartment and that he promised to pay for the damages. How much was it?"

"Twelve hundred, or somewhere in that neighbourhood," her dad said vaguely, "but I …"

Hitomi reached into her pocket and pulled out the thousand she had withdrawn from the bank. It was in hundreds. "Sorry, Dad," she said setting it down on the table. "I'll get you the other two hundred when I have a chance. This is all I've got on me right now."

All three of them stared at her.

"Hitomi!" her father growled. "Where did you get this money?"

"Van said he'd pay you back," she answered simply. "He's paying you back."

"I thought you weren't going to have anything to do with that boy anymore?"

Hitomi didn't understand. "Dad, this is quite a bit of money. You had to pay for the door Van busted, didn't you? Don't you want the money? I'm giving it to you!"

"Answer me, Young Lady! Have you seen or spoken to Van?" her father shouted at her.

Hitomi paused. She was starting to get angry. Her father was totally attacking her without cause. "I haven't seen or spoken to Van. He left me a note in my bag, and told me to pay you back for him. I've done it."

"He left you a thousand dollars in your bag?" he questioned with a puzzled expression. "I want to see this note." He threw his napkin down and rose from the table.

Hitomi winced. It was in the safe deposit box along with everything else Van had given her, excluding the necklace around her neck and the tattoo on her arm. "I don't have it," she said mournfully.

"You don't have it?" he repeated in disbelief.

"Yeah. I don't have it," she admitted, trying not to let herself lose control, and she was getting close. An argument like this might cause her to let go of her power accidentally. If things got much worse she would have to leave the table. "Dad, I don't understand. He said he'd pay you back, and he's doing it. I'll get the other two hundred when I can. Can't we just let this go?"

"Hitomi …" her father said, turning red, and looking disappointed and displeased. "I don't know what to do with you. Do you really want to kill your old man, because you're working hard on it? Besides, you obviously like this kid a lot."

"Van is not a kid."

"He's nineteen, that's a kid."

Hitomi stared. Van told her father he was nineteen? Oh crap. Was he purposefully trying to ruin things with her dad? Oh well, she'd have to let it slide. Besides, her father was still speaking.

"What kind of future do you see with a guy who breaks into your parents' home? What, do you think he'll marry you? How do you expect to live? It's like you're not thinking seriously about how you're going to live the rest of your life."

"Dad," Hitomi started, thinking about what Van said about them living unconventionally. Hitomi realized very suddenly that her father was never going to understand her unless she told him everything, gave him a demonstration, and everything. She shook her head. She simply wasn't prepared to do that. She didn't know how he would react, and she wasn't sure telling him was the best thing. What would the consequences be? Now she knew why Van lied all the time and why he never gave away unnecessary information. It was also why some of the Abaharaki thought he was a phony and why he didn't bother to correct them. He just didn't want to involve people in his world, and he had taught her to be the same way. Well, she'd be _that way_ with a vengeance. "I don't know why you're so hung up on Van. Let him go. He's a great guy. He's gone now, so please stop worrying. I'm just trying to square things off, so that he doesn't owe you anything. Okay? Do you think I want one of my friends to leave a debt of twelve hundred dollars to my parents unpaid? Not likely."

"Then how do you plan to get the other two hundred?" he asked suspiciously.

Hitomi shrugged. "I'll contact him through his bank, of course. I won't be talking to him directly. Besides, rest easy dad; he's not available."

Her father looked surprised by her answer. He had not expected an answer like that one. However, he still seemed unconvinced as he continued, "If I find out you're lying to me about that boy, Hitomi …"

"I'm not lying," she fortified, and getting herself in deeper. "I'm staying away from the Abaharaki. I promised."

* * *

**Mother's Reaction Part II**

Hitomi didn't get the opportunity to have that discussion with her mother for several days. There were a lot of things going on in their world and she couldn't seem to find a time to meet with her. One day her mother got home earlier than her father and Marlene, who was visiting 'a friend' or something like that. When her mother came home unexpectedly, Hitomi practically grabbed her by the shoulders and hauled her into the living room.

"Where's Marlene?" her mom asked patiently kicking off her heels.

"She's at Katy's," Hitomi said, feeding her mother the same obvious lie Marlene had given her, but Hitomi hadn't yet had the nerve to speak with Marlene frankly. Instead, she was concentrating on learning all she could about Akira. "Mom, we've got to talk. Please tell me everything about Aunt Akira. I have to know about her."

Hitomi's mother sat down on the sofa and brought her pantyhose covered heels onto the cushions. "Let me see," she started in a serene voice. "She was always very quiet. She didn't seem to want to talk to any of us; not her family and not any of the other children at school. When I got older I thought about her a lot and I actually wonder if someone was abusing her, because she was so withdrawn, but I can't think of who could be hurting her. If anything was happening, it must have started when she was very young, because I can't remember her ever being happy."

"She was never happy?"

"She might have been depressed. I really don't know. When she was around sixteen or something, she suddenly got popular with boys."

"The boys at school were interested in her?" Hitomi asked.

"No. It was one of the strangest things; boys from all over would come to date her. Some would even come from different countries. Maybe there weren't that many. I think there were six who were absolutely crazy about her, but she would never date any of them. _That_ was the thing that was unusual," Hitomi's mother continued, remembering. "The thing that was remarkable was that they wouldn't give up and find other girl friends or wives. They were persistent and wanted only her, but she didn't care about any of them."

"Did she reject them?"

"Not exactly. They'd propose to her and she would answer vaguely by saying something like, 'Not right now'. It was weird. Her ego didn't seem flattered by their attention, either. There was one that came later, after you were born who was younger than her. I met him once or twice and he seemed to love her more than the others. He seemed twice as devoted."

"What was he like?"

"Sorry that I can't answer more specifically. It was like he recognized something special about her that no one else could see. He had lovely eyes, but that's about all I remember. It was some time ago, and he was really too young for her, but she treated him the same as the others."

"And she never did get married?"

"No, she never did. It's strange. She was always so different than other people. It seems silly, but she seemed to walk around like she was in a dream and no one could wake her. Also, I didn't really know her very well. When she was about ten, my mother sent her to go live with her sister-in-law. My uncle Minami had died you see and his wife was very lonely. They never had any children. My mother said she thought it would improve Akira to live in the country."

"Ah-ha," Hitomi thought. That was where Akira got her power from – Uncle Minami. So when he died and she inherited his powers from him, grandma sent her to go live with his widow so that she could teach her what she knew about the ability. Before Uncle Minami died there was no way of telling whether Akira or Hitomi's mother was the one who had the ability. It was just like with her and Marlene.

However, there was one other thing that struck Hitomi as important at this moment – why did all these people who had gifts die so young? And why didn't any of them have any children? Balgus hadn't had any children, Uncle Minami didn't have any children, and neither did Aunt Akira. Did that mean that Hitomi and Van couldn't? Hitomi felt sick, but she continued with the conversation. Maybe it was just a coincidence.

"Did Aunt Akira come back even more withdrawn?" Hitomi asked out loud.

"No. I wouldn't say she was more withdrawn, but she used to seem to have delicate feelings before she went away. When she came back her eyes were clear and she wouldn't look away when you looked at her straight. Instead, it was like she just didn't care anymore." Her mother stopped abruptly and asked, "Hitomi, care to tell me the family secret?"

Hitomi wanted to tell her mother what was in her heart, and what she had learned from Van, but she knew now that there was a lot missing from the education Van had given her. He had told her outright on the lake that his Uncle Balgus had not shared any of his knowledge with him, but might Van have been lying? Van had a tendency to lie, and Hitomi didn't want to tell her mother anything Van had told her in case it turned out not to be true. On the other hand, maybe Van honestly didn't know the truth, and it was too late to ask him. Instead, it was better to continue pumping her mother for information.

"Mom, did Aunt Akira ever do anything really strange? Something that couldn't be explained?"

Her mom laughed. "She did things that weren't explainable all the time. My father thought she was insane."

"No, I mean, did she have any unusual affiliations with nature?" Hitomi continued.

"Affiliations?" Hitomi's mother repeated, looking at her with raised eyebrows. "I've never heard you use that word before. Who _have_ you been hanging out with? Van was that boy I let into the apartment that one day, wasn't he? And the boy who came to the hospital to see you when Millerna was shot, wasn't he? Is that how he talks?"

Hitomi nodded. Maybe Van had changed her in more ways than she'd realized.

"Let me ask you one question; are you in love with him?"

Hitomi shifted in her seat, and pulled her knee up to her chest. "Don't tell anyone all right?"

"Your dad says he's in love with you, too. When is he going to pop up so we can all meet him properly?" she asked.

"Dad made me promise I wouldn't have anything to do with the Abaharaki," Hitomi said evasively. "Doesn't he think everything that happened is Van's fault? Why are you encouraging me to see him when dad has asked me to cut my ties with him?"

Her mother looked at her bewitchingly, like she understood Hitomi's game. "I don't know. Maybe, because of how he looked those few times I met him, or maybe because of what your father said about him. He doesn't strike me as a bad person, and I have this feeling that if he were to come back, you'd be overjoyed."

"You shouldn't encourage me mom … Besides, he's not coming back," Hitomi said slowly.

"Did you two break up?"

"He was never my boyfriend," Hitomi said, only brushing at the truth. She didn't want to lie, but she couldn't tell anyone the truth about her relationship. Her mother had been so understanding about everything that had happened, too. Hitomi longed to confide in her, because of her kindness, but it wasn't possible. So, she stuck to her story.

"Then why didn't you get together?" her mother questioned in a soft voice.

"The chance might never come," Hitomi confessed, hoping desperately that she was lying. She wanted to see Van again. "Sorry Mom, I'm a little heartbroken about him. I didn't call you or come back when I had the chance two months ago because I wanted to be with him. I couldn't bear the idea of being away from him. Now he's gone and I might never see him again."

"I know. It's okay, Sweetie. Your dad might be mad at you, but I'm not. Things seem so intense when you're young and after that thing with Millerna, of course you'd want to make the most of your life. Don't be sad living here, okay?" she said stroking Hitomi's hair.

"I'll try not to be, but it's very hard coming back here to this pace of life after living the way I have been for the past four months. Also sharing a room with Marlene is …"

"That couldn't be helped," her mother interrupted. "Your father felt that we needed to live in a more secure building and we couldn't afford a three bedroom. I'm sorry, but you'll have to make do."

"I know," Hitomi said, trying to be as strong as her mother obviously was. "I won't complain again."

"That's my girl. Besides, I'll get your father to take some of his restrictions off you once you're in school, but you'll have to do your part as well and be an angel for the time left before you start."

"Whatever it takes," Hitomi said.

* * *

**The Media's Reaction **

In the time in between getting dragged home and starting school, Hitomi was actually able to make more progress with her father than she thought possible. She simply did whatever he wanted, and being grounded wasn't hard on her. In fact, it was a good thing for her. It kept her out of the public eye.

Plus, she often thought about what great luck it had been that she didn't have to go straight to school, because then she would be telling reporters off in public rather than in private. She wasn't rude, though. She just told them that she wasn't available for comment when they phoned or came to the door.

This was the best for her to win her father's heart. She never spoke to the reporters, answered their questions or told them where to go. She didn't pose for pictures or tell anyone about her adventures. He was glad she wasn't a show-off and said so often. She wouldn't give her story to anyone. Best of all, none of the reporters seemed interested in her after she had been living at her parents' apartment for a week. The story ran in the newspapers and was mentioned on T.V., but it was brief, boring, and basically just a look back at the school shooting that had killed Millerna. They mentioned her only as Millerna's best friend that had been missing, had come back voluntarily. They said that nothing had been seriously wrong. Hitomi didn't even watch the reports. That was true enough and she wanted to stay away from any publicity. It meant far more to her that her father was proud of her behaviour regarding the media.

No reporter came or called the last week before school. Hitomi felt like she was in the clear. Now she could try her best to live normally, and going to school was sure to be an interesting experience.

* * *

Author's Notes: Yeah, I know that was long, but I wanted to get it all over with in one shot and this was the only way to do it. I promise to introduce three new characters in the next chapter, so hopefully that will give everyone something to look forward to. After this, we get to get into the G-E-W-D gewd stuff. Then we'll be into the meaty part of the plot. 

Thanks be to Kat, my beta reader, and everyone who reviews. If you guys didn't review I'd prolly be sitting in front of my computer playing tetris instead of working. So, thank you, all of you, for not letting me rot my brain. Oh, hey and as always the chapter forum that corresponds with this chapter (chapter seven) is already up on my forum - which is accessable through my profile page. Just click on 'My Forums' and you're there.


	9. The New Girl

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. I just like to write.

* * *

**Chapter Eight**

**The New Girl**

Lord Grava Asturia High was built not on a hill, but in the snootiest area of the city, which explains why it was stuck up. When Hitomi's father dropped her and Marlene off on the first day, Hitomi couldn't believe it. Her last school had been an ugly building finished in ancient white stucco. This school looked like a castle, or a museum. She didn't know how much her father was paying for tuition, but it was probably way too much. She and Marlene looked like the only students who were not driving their own vehicles to school.

Apparently, there wasn't much changeover at their new school. Lord Grava Asturia High (the title could not be shortened or abbreviated – all four words had to be said all together each time) had small classes and only two new students joined the grade twelve students for their final year. One was Hitomi, the only girl to come onto campus wearing the long sleeved uniform on the first day and the second was a boy named Dryden Fassa. Both of them made a sensation in their own ways.

Dryden didn't need to do anything special to catch anyone's attention. His personality was strong enough. When Hitomi introduced herself to her homeroom class, he had taken the seat behind her, and introduced himself after her. He had long curly dark hair that he tied back in a ponytail, wore glasses, and had a five o'clock shadow at eight in the morning. Hitomi examined him and wondered if he was really a teenager, but whether he was or wasn't there was one thing about him that no one could ignore. He was good with women - really good with women. Hitomi had never seen anything like it, not even Allen could compare. He sweet talked the female teacher into letting him sit where he wanted, even though it was against her original seating plan, and although they had only been there for ten minutes; he was already receiving offers from the girls in the class to show him around campus.

Hitomi turned around and looked at him once, since such a fuss was being made over him, and as they locked eyes, he gave her - a look. It was profoundly sexual; the sort of look that said, "I want you and I know you want me too." Hitomi found she was red around the gills as she turned back around. "Looks like we've got a man-whore on the loose," she thought to herself as she picked up her pen. She then dismissed him as the worst kind of skank, and decided never to turn around again or even to speak to him, if she could avoid it.

However, soon it was clear that she wasn't going to be able to stay clear of him. When she came out the front doors of the school after class he was leaning against the archway that spanned the sidewalk of the main entrance. The top buttons of his uniform were undone and he was giving her _that look_ again.

Hitomi tried to walk past him without acknowledging him, but he came out and cornered her.

"You sit in front of me in homeroom, don't you, Kanzaki?" he drawled lazily.

"Yeah," she said, trying to walk past him.

"Hey, what are you doing this afternoon? Do you wanna come over?"

"Come over?" she repeated, getting irritated. She was a married woman and she was obviously being hit on by this perverted teenager. It didn't occur to her that she was also a teenager, while she stood there judging him. She ground her teeth together. He was probably the kind of guy who tried with everyone. Doubtless, he knew what women were like well enough to tell she wasn't a virgin just by looking at her, and he thought she'd be easy action. Plus, she was new, so he probably thought she would be a straightforward score since she might be feeling lonely. "Not likely," she answered him and turned away.

"Come on," he said, blocking her way with one smooth hand. "You'd have fun."

"Don't touch me!" Hitomi warned, getting quite testy. Her father was coming to pick her and Marlene up and the last thing she wanted was to have her father see her being manhandled by some loser. "Look," she said, trying to avoid a scene. "My Dad is coming to get me and I don't have permission to go anywhere today, so just leave me alone, okay?"

"Keeps you on a tight leash, eh?" Dryden observed blandly. "Doesn't he trust you?"

Hitomi looked at him carefully. He might have made the insinuation much dirtier than he did. He could have implied that she behaved much worse than that. Maybe he wasn't a total sleaze ball, but he couldn't be far off. As long as he didn't touch her butt, she resolved that she'd get through this without slapping him.

"Something like that," Hitomi said at last.

"Then maybe some other time. Try to behave Kanzaki, so your papa will let you out, ne?" he said, waving and walking away with his hands in his pockets.

Hitomi watched him walk. Three different girls approached him, but he blew all of them off sweetly as he made his way towards the parking lot unfettered by a female. He had managed quick escapes from all of them, but Hitomi noticed some interesting things about him. If he was only interested in skirt chasing, he could have gone with any one of those girls. None of them were bad looking, and it probably wouldn't have been hard to get with any of them, since he was so magnetic. The other thing was how kind he had been when he refused their offers. He had been so generous while speaking to them, that as Hitomi watched the girls go away, she realized that none of them felt like they had been rejected. From where Hitomi was standing, that was exactly what happened. He'd rejected them, but been so tender about it, that they didn't even know it.

Hmm … interesting man-whore.

* * *

At first, Hitomi didn't strike anyone's fancy. She looked positively boring sitting beside Dryden. Everyone had eyes for him … until her third day at school. It was gym class, and her gym uniform wouldn't cover her tattoo. The shirt only had the tiniest of sleeves to cover the curve downward of a person's shoulder and that was it. Her whole tattoo showed perfectly. The uniform came with a track jacket in case they were exercising outside, but Hitomi didn't care who saw it. These girls did seem pretty proper, but Hitomi didn't think it would make that much of a difference to the way she was viewed at school.

Well, as it turned out, it did.

Gym class that day was held outside, but the jacket would have been stupid. It was still September and very warm, so she left it in her locker and headed out with the rest of the girls in her class.

No one seemed to notice it until Hitomi got on the track to run the 100-meter. When she put her feet on the blocks the girl beside her noticed, but luckily did not get a chance to comment before the command was shouted for them to start.

Hitomi ran her best and left the other girls in the dust. She didn't think it was such a big deal until the girl who was timing her ran up to her to tell her what her time had been. The girl introduced herself as Yukari.

"Wow!" Yukari exclaimed, her reddish hair bobbing unconsciously. "Just over fourteen seconds! You should join the track team! Your name is Hitomi, right? Tryouts are next week. You've just got to come!"

It was then that Hitomi heard someone say quietly, "Hitomi Kanzaki."

She turned her head to see who had spoken, but it didn't seem like anyone was addressing her. However, she noticed a small knot of girls looking at her and talking. There were actually people talking and they were talking about her! This was a new experience for Hitomi. At first, she didn't know what to say. She was tempted to walk up to them and say, "Look, if you've got something to say to me, you might as well say it to my face."

But the gym teacher blew her whistle calling them away and Hitomi was soon holding the stopwatch to time Yukari.

After that, the teacher got the girls to run laps. The boys had gym class during that period too, but since the girls were using the track, they were taking it easy and playing baseball on one of the diamonds. There was no co-ed physical education at this school and apparently they believed in the old saying 'ladies first', so the girls got to have their physical assessments first while the boys played. One curve in the track came dangerously close to where the boys were playing, and Hitomi got a look at two of the boys.

On her first lap, she noticed Dryden. Despite his obvious muscles, he was playing outfield, but he wasn't hugging the chain link fence like some of the other boys who obviously didn't care about class and were happier getting a better look at the girls in their gym uniforms. He was standing perfectly still, holding his baseball glove and looking only at Hitomi.

Hitomi blushed and turned away. That boy was not safe!

On her second lap, Dryden's team was batting, so she didn't have to worry about keeping her eyes on the track as she ran because he wouldn't be infiltrating her personal space with one of his _looks_. He was sitting on the bench on the other edge of the field waiting for his turn to bat.

Hitomi noticed the boy who was pitching. It was hard not to notice when the umpire (the boy's gym coach) shouted "STRIKE" at everything he threw. He was some athlete! He had longish brown hair … and reminded her of someone. Maybe it was his build … maybe.

When the girls finished their physical assessments, Hitomi walked towards the girl's showers with the others. Yukari came up beside her and started talking to her about joining the track team again. Hitomi was just starting to think that maybe these months (now five), wouldn't be so bad after all. It would be nice to have a friend again.

Just then, one of the other girls came up to her and asked her in a really cagy voice, "Hey Hitomi, did you hear about that school shooting that happened last May?"

The girl was trying to provoke her, and Hitomi wouldn't bite. "Have we met?" Hitomi asked icily.

"I'm Lillian," she said.

"Nice to meet you," Hitomi said casually, and then turned away purposefully to answer Yukari's question. "I would love to try out for the track team, but do you think they'll take me?"

"If you can run the 100-meter in the fourteen second region, I'm sure you'll fit right in. I'm the manager. If you train up you might even be able to get your time down to thirteen seconds," Yukari explained excitedly.

"Does the team get many chances to compete with other schools?" Hitomi continued.

Finally, Lillian went away, but Hitomi guessed that she'd be back once she got her facts straight about what happened. "Right now," Hitomi thought, "Lillian only thinks that I was involved in that, but once she checks up on it, she'll know for sure I was. Then the real problems will start."

* * *

By the end of Hitomi's first week at school, everyone knew as much as could be known about her story. Some students were sympathetic, some of the rougher ones wanted to be her friend; Hitomi thought they were obsessed with tragedy and would speak seriously with none of them. The teachers gave her worried looks like they were afraid something would happen with her. The strongest reaction was not to the fact that she had been there during a school shooting and that her best friend had died. The strongest reaction was that she had been missing for four months, and would give no one an account of where she had been. Her tattoo seemed to indicate that she had been involved with something dangerous. At least that's what everyone seemed to think.

Marlene was getting pestered with questions about Hitomi by everyone who spoke to her. Hitomi didn't realize it affected her little sister so much until she accidentally overheard Marlene talking to her father about how she wanted to change schools. She didn't want to go to school with Hitomi. She was young, beautiful, and wanted to be noticed by others for herself, not for Hitomi's scandal. It was shameful.

Not only that, but Marlene redoubled her efforts to get Hitomi to confide in her. Marlene at least wanted to know what to tell people when they asked about Hitomi.

"Tell them to mind their own business," Hitomi answered crossly. She was getting tired of constantly being quizzed.

Marlene stormed off in a huff.

Hitomi stared at the ceiling and wondered what she could do to improve things with her sister. Just as things were starting to look better with her dad, things had rapidly deteriorated with Marlene. Hitomi didn't know what to do.

She found school hard enough. The classes were easy. They weren't the problem. It didn't take much for Hitomi to jog her memory and remember what she had learned the semester before. She was even starting to wonder if it was necessary for her to retake the entire semester. Oh well, she knew talking to her father about it was pointless. School wasn't hard that way, but it was hard dealing with all the speculation regarding her.

Luckily, Yukari didn't seem put-off by what everyone said about Hitomi. She seemed genuinely interested in Hitomi as an athlete and as a person without all the excess hub-dub. Hitomi wished that Marlene would be able to find a friend in her grade like Yukari.

There was one other person who didn't seem like his opinion was at all altered by the change in everyone's attitude towards Hitomi, and that person was Dryden. At last, Hitomi decided that he must have known her story before they met, and somehow, was not shocked by it. He did not, as a rule, try to spend time with Hitomi on campus, but his eyes always followed her wherever she went. Instead, he would invite her over to his home after school, not everyday, but nearly. Hitomi always adamantly refused and wondered at his persistence. Why did he want her to go to his house so badly? It sounded like he wanted to seduce her or … something worse.

One thing that was unusual about her relationship with Dryden was that none of the girls seemed to notice the attention he paid her. They were all as wildly in love with him as they were freaked out by her, and it seemed to her the strangest thing that she was never cornered or threatened by a jealous girl. At last, Hitomi decided that they were afraid of her, and would rather lose Dryden to her than lose in a fistfight with her. Everyone seemed to think Hitomi was capable of anything – a delinquent to the core.

But everything about Dryden seemed suspicious and just a little bit creepy to Hitomi, and she wouldn't even become friends with him.

Actually, except for her friendship with Yukari, Hitomi spent a great deal of time by herself those first few weeks of school. She kept out of trouble and was still being chained up by her father at home. She never had permission to go anywhere, except for the one time she had gone to Van's bank and collected the remaining funds for her father. She sat around alone and thought about Van.

It was hard not to think about him and those few weeks they had spent together. Her relationship with Van had changed her forever. She tried to adjust to living with her family, sharing a room with her sister, suddenly being notorious, and the negative attention that came with it, but … always in the back of her mind was Van. Sometimes when she was at school she would suddenly realize that she was bitterly thirsty, and remember for just a split second that Van always had a water bottle with him so she was saved. Of course, he was gone and she'd remember very quickly everything that happened, but he had become such a part of her life that getting on with things as though he didn't exist was challenging.

And she still loved him … and wanted him … but she _couldn't_ think about that part!

Where was he? Why had he done the things he had? Why did he want to marry her when he knew that he was going to be caught by the Dragon Slayers?

The list of questions Hitomi had was getting longer and her impatience to find out the truth about Van was mounting. Plus, she wasn't getting enough compensation from her relationship with her father to help her keep her promise to him to stay away from the Abaharaki. Hitomi made up her mind that as soon as she got the chance, she was going to drive out to Aunt Flo's farm and find out exactly what had happened to Van. If her father found out that she broke her promise, she'd take the consequences.

* * *

Author's Notes: I love Dryden. I was SO waiting for this moment ... for this chapter ... ahhh! I couldn't wait. 

Thanks be to Kat for beta reading and for everyone who reads and reviews. PLEASE REVIEW! I'm a good girl! I update often! Come on and reward me a little! I really appreciate reviews. I keep them all in a little book that gives me confidence and reminds me of good things I wrote and bad things I should never write again! Every little word of feedback is valuable, even if I make mistakes and need to be told so. I'm aiming to try to get something published, so please - go nuts!


	10. An Old Flame

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, Brave New World, or my underwear ... oh wait! Maybe that last one really is mine.**  
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**Chapter Nine**

**An Old Flame**

_Featuring "Falling" by Brave New World_

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It was three weeks after Hitomi started school that her mother was finally able to convince her father to lend Hitomi the car and let her go out for an evening.

Hitomi snatched the keys out of her father's poised hand and made for the door without hesitation.

"Why are you running like that?" her dad asked, following her into the entryway where she was putting on her shoes.

"I don't want you to change your mind." She planted a kiss on his cheek and ran out quickly.

Hitomi wasn't sure, but she thought she heard her mother laughing through the door, but it didn't matter. She was glad her father had finally caved. She had been dying to go out to Aunt Flo's to find out the truth.

Once she was on the highway it was difficult not to speed. Van might even be there and she wanted to see Van more than anything.

When Hitomi finally pulled up in front of the house, she saw that the porch light was on. She got out of the car and raced up to the front door, then rang the doorbell intensely.

Aunt Flo answered the door, but didn't look at all surprised to see Hitomi standing there. "Oh," she said dully, "are you here to pick up the convertible?"

"The convertible?" Hitomi asked, not understanding at first what Aunt Flo was talking about. Then Hitomi remembered that Van said he had told her that he was giving it to Hitomi. She had forgotten all about it. "No. Where's Van?"

Aunt Flo shrugged her shoulders and walked back into the house leaving the door open for Hitomi. "Van's not here," she said, going into the kitchen where Merle and Eries were sitting at the table. From the expressions on their faces, it was obvious Hitomi had interrupted an intense discussion between the three women.

"Hi," Eries said pleasantly, but Merle kept her head down and drummed her fingers on the lacquer.

"Hi," Hitomi answered vaguely. Then she directed herself to Aunt Flo, "Please tell me, where is Van?"

"I don't know where he is. He never came back from The Voltage Room," Aunt Flo said. "And he asked me to give you the convertible."

"Did he say anything else?" Hitomi begged.

"He did," Aunt Flo said dryly, but didn't proceed to tell Hitomi what he said.

Instead Merle answered her tartly. "He said that we weren't supposed to talk to you anymore."

"He did not!" Hitomi exclaimed, not willing to be bullied by Merle.

"No, he did," Aunt Flo continued. "He said he wasn't coming back and that we weren't supposed to talk to you anymore. We all intend to follow his instructions. If he asked us not to speak to you – then that's all there is to it."

Hitomi was completely shocked by what Aunt Flo was saying. She realized that Aunt Flo didn't like her, but she thought it was just because she wanted Van to be involved with a girl who had the same abilities he had … well, with _her_. If only she could tell Aunt Flo that she was really the girl Van got his tattoo over and that she was his wife. It was wretched to have to keep it quiet. Hitomi could only guess that Van wanted to keep her away from the Abaharaki because he didn't plan to have anything to do with them in the future, and he didn't want Hitomi to be used by them if they knew what she could do. She understood Van's reasoning, but she was finding it difficult to accept his way of doing things.

"I just want to ask you one question," Aunt Flo continued, in a voice that grated.

"What?" Hitomi asked, relaxing her stance. She was very interested in what Aunt Flo had to ask. Maybe it would further explain why everyone was so hostile towards her.

"Why did you decide to blackmail my nephew?" she asked coldly.

Hitomi understood what was really happening at that moment, and pulled her back up straight. "I see," she said. Aunt Flo was very protective of Van, and she thought that Hitomi was a threat. Merle had never liked her, so there was no love lost there, and Eries looked … maybe a little sorry. Hitomi thought she was preoccupied. "So, you don't want to talk to me about what happened. Was Van able to rescue Allen and the others? You might at least tell me that much."

"Not until you answer my question. What power do you have over Van that he's willing to give you his car?" Aunt Flo persisted.

"I'm not blackmailing Van. I would have no reason to do something like that."

"We don't know that," Merle said dangerously.

"Here's the keys," Aunt Flo said, tossing them towards Hitomi. "If you're not going to answer me, take them and go."

"I can't take the car," Hitomi said, really getting angry now. "I'm here in my parents' vehicle and I can't drive both back to the city. Plus, I didn't come here for the convertible. I don't even want it! I have no where to park it!" she proclaimed noisily, slamming the keys onto the table top with a bang. "And I don't have to explain anything to you."

"Then get out!" Merle shouted.

"I'm going," Hitomi said, taking to her feet and heading for the door, making sure to slam it good and hard on her way out.

Hitomi slammed the car door shut too, as she got into the drivers' seat of her parents' car. She even whacked her head on the steering wheel in frustration.

Of all the infuriating pieces of garbage! They wouldn't answer any of her questions. Was Van's sacrifice for nothing? Wasn't he able to save even one of them? Well, if she couldn't get answers from the Abaharaki, she knew someone who she might be able to bully into telling her. There was one person who knew what she was capable of who might have the sense to be afraid of her, and luckily she knew exactly where to find him.

Hitomi threw the car into reverse and headed back towards the city. She was going to the club to find Dilandau.

* * *

After Hitomi paid the door fee at the club, she stepped into a tomb. She was absolutely stunned at how few people were hanging out. It wasn't that early in the evening that it should be this empty. It was about nine. Even though the dance music was pumping there was no one on the floor and the light show was playing for no one. There were a few groups of people scattered through the lounge, but that was genuinely it.

What happened? Where was everyone?

Hitomi went up to the bar and asked the bartender where everyone was.

"You haven't been here lately then. Everyone went over to that new club over on 106 Street. You've probably heard of it – The Voltage Room. I couldn't believe how many regulars we lost when that place opened."

_The Voltage Room?_

Hitomi felt sick. Of course, Van had told her that it was a Dragon Slayer owned and operated venture, but it hadn't even occurred to her that Dilandau had probably moved their hangout to their own turf. Of course he had! She had been stupid not to think of it. And the bartender said they lost most of their customers when The Voltage Room opened. Hitomi remembered how many people she had seen in the stadium the night they had kidnapped her. There were so many Dragon Slayers. If she went there she would be hopelessly outnumbered. She felt like going there would be like following Van down to Hell.

Hitomi thanked the bartender and promptly left the club. There was no reason to hang out there now. What was she going to do? She sat in the car and thought about what she was going to do next. Either she went home or she went to The Voltage Room. She didn't see any other options. Which was it going to be?

She started driving and turned her car onto 106 Street. The Voltage Room was the only choice she had. She couldn't just let Van go without finding out what happened to him. He might want her to stay uninvolved, so that he could handle things his way, but she couldn't stand the way he left her in the dark. She had been patient for long enough and now she was angry enough to walk in the lion's den under her own power.

Besides, she wasn't afraid of Dilandau. He wasn't someone to be afraid of. She was much tougher than he could ever be since her training with Van. No problem. She'd go see him.

The Voltage Room was a brightly lit affair right on 106 Street with two searchlights on the sidewalk outside. The sign surprised her, as it was the image of a butterfly behind the title of the bar. A butterfly? There was no parking and a long line of people hoping to get in. A line? Hitomi bit her lip. She wasn't exactly dressed for clubbing. She was wearing a pair of jeans, a black T-shirt, and a jean jacket. There was no way she'd get in under normal circumstances.

First, Hitomi found a place to park the car and then she hurried down two blocks to get back to the entrance. The line up was very long, and it wasn't moving. So many people wanted to get in. Hitomi was impressed that a Dragon Slayer club was so popular, but she guessed it made sense.

Well, there was no way she was waiting around all night to get in. She walked swiftly past the line up and up to the pair of bouncers that were guarding the door.

She managed to get their attention and said, "I'm a friend of Dilandau's."

"Who isn't?" one of them said hoarsely. Then he moved his head around to tell the next person in line that they weren't allowing anyone else in right then.

"He'd want to see me. So, can I bypass the line?" Hitomi continued.

"No, you can't," the same one said, looking more pissed off than before.

"Might as well give it a try," Hitomi thought to herself before saying, "I'm Hitomi Kanzaki. Ring any bells with you?"

"Oh, Miss Kanzaki," the bouncers said, both jumping. "Please come in. Mr. Albatou has been waiting for you." Then they cleared the way for her and let her into the club. Hitomi heard people in the lineup outside booing her. The bouncers arranged for her to be escorted past the front entrance and to Dilandau's table.

Dilandau had been expecting her?

When Hitomi entered The Voltage Room she was totally blown away. This was a really high-class club. It was dressed up to the nines. Plus, the music they were playing was the hottest dance track Hitomi had ever heard. It was so loud that it was pounding into her rib cage like a jackhammer. No wonder this place was so popular.

There was a square area on a lower level than the entrance that was circled in tables and a higher square area above outlining it with a railing around it, like a balcony. Hitomi stood there and thought that it looked exactly like a shooting range. If someone was on the dance floor on the lower level, they could be surrounded by people on the top floor and shot.

It had never occurred to Hitomi that Van could have been killed, but as she stood there and analyzed the room, the possibility came home to her very clearly. Well, she wouldn't worry about that now. She was only going to recognize that this was a very dangerous place and proceed to go see Dilandau.

He was seated at a table in one of the far back corners of the lower level. It was a round booth seat and he was surrounded by people. The first thing Hitomi noticed was that the girl on his arm was not his usual green-eyed beauty, since he seemed to have a thing for women like that. But now, Hitomi realized that the reason he kept girls like that around him before was to try to show that he was looking for the girl with the moon for her symbol – her. Now that he had found her, there was no need to act like he was still looking, so the girl on his arm was a dark eyed beauty with a lovely sheen of long golden hair. When Hitomi approached with a bouncer beside her, Dilandau promptly ordered his people away from him and asked them to leave the two of them alone for a while.

The bouncer left and Hitomi sat down across from Dilandau.

He was looking better than Hitomi remembered. His hair had grown out a bit, and his eyes looked sharper, somehow, under his silver eyebrows, but Hitomi didn't see fit to compliment him and said instead, "Have you gone even grayer since I saw you last?"

"Har har," he said cynically as he pulled a cigarette out of a pack with his mouth and lit it.

"You're not allowed to smoke in here," Hitomi commented. "I'm sure you've heard about the city's new bylaw."

"That's for bars. This is a private club. Different rules, my dear. Of course, we don't encourage smoking, but we allow it. Didn't you see all those kids out front, trying to get in? It's made us the hottest club in town, or didn't you know?"

Hitomi rolled her eyes. "Like it matters. I'm here for a different reason, anyway."

"Of course you are," he said suggestively, "I knew you couldn't stay away from me."

"Right," she said sarcastically.

"I've been waiting for you; or rather _he's_ been waiting for you," Dilandau said, looking completely disinterested in her suddenly. He was back to his old self. That was good. That way, Hitomi felt like she knew who she was dealing with.

"Glad to see we're friends again," she said coldly.

"We'll always be friends," he said, "as long as you don't interfere with what's mine."

"Celena?" Hitomi asked, thinking he could have nothing else that he would want to protect.

"Exactly," he said, grinding his barely smoked cigarette out.

"Where's Van?" she questioned, finally getting to the point.

"_That's_ why you're here, Hitomi!" he exclaimed. "I thought _he'd_ gotten farther with you than that. So, you're still thinking about The Dragon, ne?"

"Who's _he_?" she asked, not understanding Dilandau's meaning at all.

"Okay, I'll tell you where Van is," Dilandau said, mocking her terribly with his eyes and avoiding her question. "We asked him, very politely, to join us, and he agreed."

Hitomi was stunned. "I don't believe you!"

"It's true. He might be on the dance floor right now with a honey. He loves women you know, and Dragon Slayer girls are the best in the world. You can hear screaming out of his bedroom door all night some nights. He's a man with stamina."

Hitomi jumped to her feet – outraged. _Van wouldn't do something like that! _Hitomi knew it. He just couldn't have done what Dilandau said he did. "I don't believe you!" she said hotly, breathing hard. "I'll kill you," she whispered, but Dilandau heard her.

"Come out onto the dance floor with me Hitomi. I'm sure we'll see him. Besides, it will be fun to dance together again, and you love this song, don't you?"

Hitomi had never heard the song playing before, but when Dilandau came around to her side of the table and invited her up, she reluctantly got up with him. There were too many people on the dance floor to see if Van was one of them, and she wanted to test Dilandau. Van wouldn't be there. There was no way. He wouldn't do the things Dilandau said he did. He couldn't!

Dilandau pulled her into his arms and started her going by whispering in her ear, "This will be just like old times, ne?"

Hitomi gulped a lump in her throat. She hated Dilandau, so why did he make her feel this way? Why did he _always_ make her feel this way?

The music was pounding and the voice was singing. It was a low, mellow, male voice, so smooth as to almost be at odds with the beat. He was singing:

_I never know what's happening_

_Except tripping and I'm gone_

There were lots of people out on the dance floor and it was very hot. It had been a long time since Hitomi had gone dancing at a club. She had forgotten how the light show sometimes made her dizzy.

And even though they were supposed to be looking for Van, Dilandau kept her focusing on his scarlet eyes. He had his fingers curling around her back, but Hitomi pushed him off and put some distance between them. He was such a bastard, and she was married. She had to look for Van!

_Know the state between pleasure and pain?_

_Love and hate become one and the same_

_I can't wait to drink from your cup again_

Hitomi broke eye contact with Dilandau and looked around for Van. The room seemed to be spinning for her, though, and she was having a hard time concentrating on her search. She thought she might trip on her own feet; she was getting so clumsy. She kept seeing the same faces over and over again, and was never able to see anything new. It was like she was going around in circles.

Then she looked at Dilandau. He was dancing, and Hitomi remembered how cruel he was, but why was he always able to win her over? His manner always made her forget how dangerous he was.

She had come here to get answers from him, but instead ended up doing whatever he wanted. There was no way Van was on the dance floor like Dilandau said. He just said he was so that she would dance with him and bring her guard down. Dilandau knew how much Hitomi liked to dance.

_I promised myself I wouldn't put myself through this again_

_So why do I find myself standing at your door?_

Hitomi turned away from Dilandau again to look for Van. Was he here after all? But she was becoming disoriented and confused. There was Dilandau and Van … and she turned her back on Dilandau, to turn around and see Van standing in his place.

His dark hair was wet and lying in strands against his lean brown cheeks. He smiled at Hitomi and welcomed her with his eyes – so warm and inviting.

Then he was pulling her into the circle of his arms.

_Close your eyes and watch me_

_I'm falling again_

_Close your eyes and watch me_

_I'm falling again_

Now he was holding her at a distance and making room for them to dance, just as she and Dilandau had done.

"Van!" she called, screaming through the loud music. "What are you doing here?"

He smiled a half smile with an odd twist of his lips.

Hitomi was squinting to see him. "Were you able to save Allen and the others?" she asked.

Van still didn't answer her. He jerked her close and put his lips to her throat.

_Say goodbye to self-control_

_As I hit release and go_

Hitomi had sat up in her bed so many nights remembering what Van's kiss was like. It was something she never forgot; something she always wanted to feel again. She hadn't seen him for over a month, and sometimes the memory of the feeling felt like it was failing.

Her hand was in the tangles of his hair. She wanted to feel the way he made her feel again.

_Holding out for that release_

_Nothing in that falls beneath_

_I can't wait to feel you around me again_

But that special feeling that only Van gave her wasn't coming. She waited, but it wasn't coming. She opened her eyes and looked over his shoulder. The room had come back into focus, and the light show was clear. Diamonds of the different coloured lights were illuminating the ceiling. What was missing?

Heat.

It was the unique heat of Van's breath that she was waiting for. That feeling of mystery and magic that came with his touch and it wasn't coming. Instead, her chest was starting to feel cold. Yet, she was pressed up against him.

Then the most incredible thing happened.

Van's hands went to her waist and he began squeezing her hips.

_I promised myself I wouldn't put myself through this again_

_So why do I find myself coming back for more?_

Hitomi turned her head and saw that her hand was not caressing black hair, but silver. It was Dilandau!

She took in a sharp intake of breath and kicked him off with her knee. She didn't make contact with his torso before he backed off. Once there was space between them again, she saw that he looked like Van. But he couldn't be.

He couldn't be!

_Close your eyes and watch me_

_I'm falling again_

_Close your eyes and watch me_

_I'm falling again_

"You …" she breathed, finally getting her bearings. What was happening?

Van's eyes gave her a flirty look, as he abruptly grabbed the arm of the girl next to him and drew her close to him.

It had to be Dilandau and not Van at all! Van wouldn't be doing what she saw him doing now! He wouldn't be holding another girl close to him. He wouldn't be kissing her! He wouldn't!

But it looked like him! He was dancing like him! His lips were …

_My body against my mind_

_I take the sweetest taste while I contemplate_

_Why I get tripped up every time_

Hitomi couldn't stand to watch what was happening. It wasn't Van! It couldn't be!

She turned on her heel and made for the door. She bumped into people in her rush to get out of The Voltage Room. What kind of place was this? Why had she wanted to come? She would never find Van in a place like this.

_Close your eyes and watch me_

_I'm falling again_

_Close your eyes and watch me_

_I'm falling again_

Hitomi sat in her parents' car in their parking stall outside their condominium complex for a solid half an hour before she felt strong enough to go in. It was only ten thirty and she knew that her parents would still be awake.

Her experience in The Voltage Room had scared her stupid. That much was clear. From here, she really didn't know how to proceed. She wanted to find Van, but if the Abaharaki wouldn't speak to her and going to see Dilandau had … that place really had been Hell. She would never be able to go back ... ever.

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Author's Notes: THANK YOU everyone who reviewed! I wanted to release this chapter SO badly! And thanks to everyone who reviewed, I feel like I can release a little quicker than waiting until the weekend. Special thanks to Kaytala for reviewing. She used to go by Kat, but now she's a neko, so we can call her by her new id name. WELCOME! 

Okay, so I LOVE writing songfics. My favourite thing to do is incorporate lyrics into single chapters for novellas. I do that all the time in my Shadow Magic series (Slayers fanfic), and I haven't done it even once for DM or MW. I was tempted to do it for the first chapter of DM, but decided that that might be pushing it. So, I didn't do a song for Van and Hitomi. It think it's better this way.

Brave New World is a techno band that publishes their work under the label ADD (A Different Drum) and they ROCK! The only thing is that I'm not 100 sure if these are the exact lyrics. I know I'm missing one line for sure. But, these guys aren't exactly mainstream, so their lyrics are precious, and by precious - I mean difficult to find. Hopefully, they won't mind me borrowing their stuff, as I actually did send my minion to buy their C.D.and sent them my hugs and kisses.

Anyway, love is all around the world tonight!


	11. Built Like an Angel

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. Or Electronic lyrics.

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**Chapter Ten**

**Built Like an Angel**

It had been four days since Hitomi's visit to The Voltage Room now, and she was starting to feel glummer about her situation than ever before. She didn't know what had happened when she had gone to go see Dilandau and she didn't know how to proceed. She still desperately wanted to find Van and having seen him like that was torture – like hanging a carrot in front of a rabbit. How had that even been possible? Dilandau had somehow turned into Van while they had been dancing, but Hitomi had no idea how that was possible. It didn't jive with Van's theories about magic. There was only one thing that she was certain about. Van had NOT been fooling around with anyone. It didn't matter what Dilandau said. Hitomi knew the more intimate details of The Dragon, and she knew that he couldn't kiss someone passionately without burning them. He just couldn't. So, at least she could relax on that point, and it would have to be enough, because she didn't have anything else.

All she could do now was go back to school and work on getting her final credits, so that she could leave home at the end of the semester. It was hard though. After seeing Van … she missed him more than ever. She decided to join the track team to keep herself out of trouble and give her something to do.

When Hitomi went to their first practice, she had the privilege of meeting the second most popular boy in school (Dryden being the first). His name was Amano Susumu. He was the boy Hitomi had seen pitch that first day she had been running laps in gym class. He had looked familiar to her then, and when Hitomi saw him up close she realized why. He looked like Allen. The resemblance only reminded her that she still didn't know what happened to him.

Yukari asked Hitomi if she had a crush on Amano after they were introduced, since she didn't seem to have a crush on Dryden, like most everyone else, and she truly seemed to be examining Amano. Hitomi had only been recognizing how much he looked like Allen, except for the colour of his hair, and it had obviously been misinterpreted by Yukari. Hitomi told her that she didn't and that she wasn't interested in a relationship with any of the boys who attended their school.

"Someone from another school?" Yukari asked with a smile.

Hitomi shook her head. "I'm not interested in romance," she answered.

Now, she was in gym class, again, running laps. Their gym teacher liked to work them hard until the good weather diminished. Hitomi jogged along comfortably by herself. She would have liked to jog with Yukari, but despite the girl's position as manager of the track team, she didn't seem to have much physical prowess, and Hitomi couldn't bear to run at her pace.

Lord Grava Asturia High was built on a quiet city street. Hitomi had no idea there was a place in the city that was this quiet, but apparently there was. So, she was startled when a noisy motorcycle came growling down the road. The rider stopped in front of the track and took off his helmet. Even though he had his long blonde hair tied in a ponytail, there was no way he could be mistaken for a woman; even at that distance his physique was too powerful for a girl. The black biker gear probably made his shoulders seem broader and his hips narrower than they were in reality. It had to be Allen. Hitomi remembered her first analysis of him – built like an angel.

Hitomi veered off the track and across the grass to where he was now leaning against his motorcycle.

"Hey Allen," she called as she approached him. "How did you know I was in class now?"

"Hey Hitomi," he said, coming to talk to her through the chain link fence. It was taller than he was. "I've been looking for you and you have been impossible to track down."

"I'm glad you're safe," Hitomi said. "Was Van able to free the others as well as you?"

Allen exhaled through his nose heavily. "Yeah, he was. Fat lot of good it's done us though. Don't worry about us though, since it's not really your problem anymore. Eries told me that Van banished you from the Abaharaki. I'm curious. Why did he do that, Hitomi?"

"I knew that you weren't going to be happy about Van's decision not to come back," she said, thinking only of Van's association with Allen. They were best friends.

Allen noticed the way she spoke about Van and revised his question, "I'm not talking about Van. I'm talking about you. Why did he send you away?"

"I'm supposed to finish high school and keep out of trouble," she explained.

"Right … and are you able to do that with that dragon on your arm?" he asked. Of course he was perfectly able to see her dragon-moon tattoo while she was wearing her gym uniform. "Curious design you chose, Hitomi. Does it have any significance?"

"No," Hitomi lied. "I just saw it on the wall when I went in to get it and thought it was cuter than the regular Abaharaki tattoo."

"And Van approved of you getting it done like that?" Allen asked, looking doubtful.

"No," Hitomi said, suddenly perking up. Van hadn't approved of her getting the tattoo at all. It had been all her own doing, and done behind Van's back. Once it was done, it was too late for Van to say whether her choice of tattoo had been a good one or not. Had she made a mistake somehow?

"Didn't think so," Allen drawled. "It's kind of big, but I suppose you could have the moon lasered off when you realize what a moon means in our world, not to mention the dreadfulness of its location."

"And what does a moon mean in _your_ world?" Hitomi asked, ignoring his final comment.

"You haven't learned to give up on Van," Allen said.

Hitomi didn't give an answer to his observation on purpose and moved onto something else. She wasn't going to argue with every person from the Abaharaki about Van's love life. They didn't understand and she was sick of the conversation and the implications that came with it. They didn't think she was good enough for Van, and she was young enough to be pissed off by it, even though they were misguided enough to make such comments. She and Van had misguided them together. In fact, they were purposefully lying to them. Hitomi couldn't get angry when they believed them. "What happened to Van? Do you know? I drove out to Aunt Flo's farm last weekend and they wouldn't tell me anything. Do know what happened?"

"A lot has happened sinceI got back from The Voltage Room," Allen said, when suddenly he looked over Hitomi's shoulder. "It looks like we've finally caught the attention of your gym teacher. Look, she's coming. Well, should I disappear for the moment? I don't want to get you into trouble, but I really need to talk to you, Hitomi. Can I pick you up after school?"

"No," Hitomi said, thinking of her father. He was coming to pick her up. She'd rather get in trouble with the school than with her father. "Have you got another helmet? I'll come with you now."

"Sure, but …"

"Great," Hitomi said. She grabbed onto the fence and scaled up to the top. Her shoes didn't fit into the links very well, but she _had_ to know what happened to Van, and one quick look over her shoulder told her that her gym coach had started running to stop her.

"Kanzaki!" the teacher bellowed.

Hitomi didn't pay attention and jumped over the edge to land … smack in Allen's arms.

"I wouldn't have let a lady fall from that distance," he said gallantly. He put her on her feet and handed her a helmet.

"Just go!" Hitomi urged, slamming the helmet on her head. The coach was almost at the fence.

Allen didn't put his helmet on, but just straddled his bike. He put Hitomi behind him and sped off quickly. Hitomi looked over her shoulder to see her coach yelling. She was going to be in big trouble when she got back to school. She guessed leaving school property in the middle of class wasn't going to earn her any credit.

Hitomi had never been on a motorcycle before, and she had to admit it was a whole new experience for her. The pavement moved so quickly under them and the wind was so crisp around her. Hitomi was wearing gym shorts and the speed Allen rode at was causing her gym uniform to feel like nothing. It was FREEZING! But … Hitomi realized that it wasn't a problem – she loved ice.

A few blocks away from school, Allen pulled into a gas station and stopped.

"Do you think this will give us enough space from your ogre of a gym coach?" he asked after he had stopped.

"Probably," she answered, pulling off her helmet.

"I'll answer your questions if you'll answer mine," he said. Maybe it was the first time Hitomi heard him talk sensibly to her when he wasn't hurt. Eries was right about him, he flirted with everyone.

"Oh, well," Hitomi thought. "At least he's not as bad as Dryden." Then she said out loud, "Of course. You go first."

"Ladies first," he said, sounding flirtatious again.

"That attitude won't get you anywhere with me," Hitomi said, sick to death of being jerked around by skanky boys. She would have said something back at the school when he caught her if her gym teacher hadn't interrupted them, but now she had to say something. The incident with Dilandau had really freaked her out. She had let someone other than Van kiss her! She felt like a cheater, even though she thought it was Van, but now the incident with Dilly seemed like a dream – that she had been foolish to believe it. She wouldn't take any chances with Allen. She wouldn't lead him on even a little bit. "Talk to me like I'm Van or I'll run back to school," she threatened.

"I wasn't treating you differently," he countered.

"Sure you weren't. I'm serious. Talk to me like I'm a guy, or I won't tell you anything."

"Fine, fine, fine. I still maintain that I'm not treating you differently, Lady Love, but I'll try to do what you ask. I'm here because Eries said that you saw Celena when you went to the Dragon Slayer hideout. I want to find her."

"What happened after Miguel took you to the construction site?" Hitomi asked fervently, trying to figure out where she should start her story.

"I don't know. I was hit on the head again immediately after I was pulled out of the car. I was delirious and my head felt like it had been split in half, and when I finally woke up I was alone in a little room with nothing in it but a bed and a toilet. It was like a prison cell."

"Did you try to escape?"

Allen flicked a stray strand of hair out of his eye. "Yeah, but it didn't do me any good. I just got the crap kicked out of me each time. Sometimes they tied me up – bastards."

"Van told me he didn't think you were being tortured," Hitomi said. "He thought there was a chance Dilandau was blackmailing Celena; threatening her that if she didn't do what he wanted, then they'd hurt you. Do you know if that was what was going on?"

Allen shook his head. "If that was going on, I had no idea. They didn't keep me with Jeremy, Richard and Nick." Allen scoffed, "You should have seen the number the Dragon Slayers did on those boys."

"What? Are they okay?" Hitomi asked, alarmed.

"From what I understand, none of them were hurt. Instead, Dilandau and Folken totally convinced them that the Abaharaki was the group that was at fault. Van disbanded us temporarily before I could come back and now that those brainwashed idiots have been talking to all our members about how wrong I've been about the Dragon Slayers, there's no way we'll be able to get back on our feet with our current membership."

"What are they saying?"

"Well, everyone who's a member of the Abaharaki has a reason why. They've been hurt or damaged or something, and Dilandau and Folken talked to them for six weeks straight, and they've taught them all about how all of those things happened because of us. Basically, they've pinned the blame for every incident on the Abaharaki instead of the Dragon Slayers. Lots of the incidents even happened before we were formed, but somehow – and it's ridiculous – they've been able to convince everyone that we're wrong and it's their association with me that's been the cause of all their problems. Some of them have even joined up with the Dragon Slayers now and are prepared to completely betray us if given half the chance."

"How is that even possible?" Hitomi gasped.

"In any rate, there are only four of us left now; Merle, Eries, Gaddes, and Chid. That's everyone."

"You're kidding!"

"No, I'm not kidding. That's what's happened, and I feel sick to my stomach and outraged beyond …" Allen said stopping himself before he truly expressed his frustration. Then he raised his eyebrows and looked at Hitomi seriously. "Now tell me why Van ordered you away."

Hitomi cocked her head and tried to think of a lie. "I love him, and he sent me away as his charming little form of rejection. I'm sure you know the story of his moon tattoo."

"Yes, but I didn't think you knew it."

"Well, he decided to wait for her, or at least that's the reasoning he gave Aunt Flo."

"That doesn't make sense," Allen said, looking perplexed. "He told me he wanted to protect you. There's no way he would have sent you home if he wanted to make sure you were safe. If you're home Dilandau can get at you at any time."

"He changed his mind," Hitomi said coldly. "Can we drop this already?"

"Fine," Allen said, being charitable. "Then tell me about Celena."

Hitomi took a deep breath and started, "I met her when I broke into the construction site. I broke a window to get in and I found her in a room."

"Was she alone?"

Hitomi nodded. "I'm not sure what I should tell you," Hitomi said, thinking about the syringe she found in Celena's hand and the marks Dilandau had engraved on her skin. "Most of it is pretty disturbing."

"You'd better tell me," Allen said, looking dangerous.

"She's Dilandau's girlfriend, I guess. I found her in his bedroom … and I'm afraid he's turned her into a bit of a drug addict," Hitomi said, deciding not to tell him about the other part.

Allen nodded. "I'd expected that, but I didn't know Dilandau was the one who was keeping her under lock and key. Dilandau's not such a little puke as he used to be."

"I saw him last week," Hitomi said. "And yeah, he seems like a bigwig."

"Last week?" Allen asked, his eyes large in astonishment. "How on earth did that happen?"

"I went to The Voltage Room to see him," Hitomi confessed.

"Why?"

"Aunt Flo wouldn't tell me what happened to Van, so I thought if I approached Dilandau directly, I would be able to get more answers."

"Oh really?" Allen asked, turning around on the motorcycle so he was facing her directly. "That was pretty reckless of you. Did you go in with twin revolvers on your belt or what? What made you think you could possibly walk away from that? Isn't Dilandau still worried you'll tell on him about Kristy?"

"The girl Millerna saw the Dragon Slayers beat up?"

"Yeah."

"I don't think he's particularly worried that I'll tell on him," Hitomi said.

"Why not?"

"Dilandau's got something on me. I sorta … I sorta … stabbed Miguel, so right now Dilandau and I are kind of at a stand still."

"You _stabbed_ Miguel! Did you kill him?"

"I don't think so. I think the Dragon Slayers came and got him. They came and burned Van's house down. Didn't Eries tell you all about this?"

Allen rubbed his chin. "She wasn't sure what had happened. She said something about it, but to be honest, I didn't believe that you'd actually done it. You seem like such a normal girl, maybe not easily frightened, but definitely normal. I just couldn't picture you doing something like that."

"If I ever get charged for it, I'll count on you to testify as to how 'normal' I am. Okay?" Hitomi said, wondering if it was okay to trust Allen with this much information.

"What happened when you went to see Dilandau?" Allen persisted, getting back on topic.

"He told me that Van joined the Dragon Slayers," Hitomi said.

"Do you honestly believe that?"

"No. I don't, but Van seems to have disappeared into thin air. Where could he be? Unless you know what happened to him?"

"I have no idea. They escorted me from my cell straight to Gaddes, who drove us all out of there." He paused. It looked like he was thinking hard and coming up with a solution. "Hey Hitomi, let's go to The Voltage Room tomorrow night and ask Dilandau where Celena is, unless you already asked him?" Allen asked hopefully.

"I didn't ask him," Hitomi reluctantly admitted. "I didn't get a chance to ask him much of anything before he did something … so there is no way I'm going back to The Voltage Room. The scariest thing happened when I was there and there is no way I'm going back."

"What happened?" Allen asked, looking sensitive – at least his eyes did.

"You're not going to believe this, but Dilandau … sort of … turned into Van." Hitomi didn't think that Allen would believe that, but she thought there was no harm explaining the sort of dangers she'd encountered while there. "It was the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life. I have no idea what the deal is there, but there's no way I'm going there again!" Hitomi declared.

"What about Celena? You've seen her; you can't mean to leave her with Dilandau. She … is too …"

"I know," Hitomi said, interrupting Allen's tirade, "Celena doesn't want to be there. I know. I get it, but I don't think that place can be trusted, and I don't think we'll get anything out of Dilandau. You're dreaming if you think we will."

"I'll do anything to get her back. She's my sister! That's why I formed the Abaharaki in the first place. I want to find her and help her. Please Hitomi! At least think about it! Whatever Dilandau did, it was probably just a trick, and I have no one else to turn to. There's no way Eries or Merle will go with me, even though they want to help. You've already been there and obviously came out unscathed. You must have some sway with Dilandau or you wouldn't be here right now. Please help me," he pleaded.

"Dilandau did say something the other night about Celena."

"What?"

"He said that I would always be friends with him as long as I didn't mess with her," Hitomi said uneasily. "Not that I'm friends with Dilandau. He just wants to confuse me and use me. He'll say anything to me as long as it keeps me pacified. He wouldn't want me to do anything rash, but I'm not going to The Voltage Room. That place is smack dab in the middle of their territory and they are the ones that are in charge – not us. You don't know what you'd be getting yourself into. Besides, Van sacrificed himself to save you. Do you really want his sacrifice to be in meaningless?"

"I appreciate what you're saying, Hitomi, but are you going to help me or not?" Allen said patiently. The man didn't even look frustrated as he stood there. Allen was older than Van by a couple years. He was twenty-four, Hitomi thought, but she wasn't sure.

It wasn't as though Allen's motives weren't pure. He wanted to save his sister. Hitomi remembered how pathetic Celena had looked when she crumpled in front of Dilandau and he dragged her away. Oh crap! Was Hitomi going to be able to turn her back on Allen? Van said he didn't want anything to do with the Abaharaki from now on, but he also said that he wanted to save Celena. Maybe he was even doing that now! What if their plans ruined Van's chances of actually getting her back? Oh! There was so much to consider.

"You'll have to give me some time to think about it," Hitomi said.

"Should I take you back to school?" Allen offered, turning back around to mount the bike properly.

"Yeah."

"By the way, Hitomi," Allen said, grabbing her arm and turning her towards him. "I'm going against Van even speaking to you. Aunt Flo told me very seriously that I was to have nothing to do with you. If anyone finds out, I'll be honest and say that I went against Van's instructions. Are you okay with that?"

"Van says a lot of things," she said callously, and put her arms around Allen's waist. "Just take me back to school. I've got to get to my next class."

* * *

Author's Notes: Okay, I use the words "built like an angel - six feet tall" to describe Allen in Chapter 11 of Dragon's Moon. I knew I was ripping those words from somewhere else, but I couldn't pin point where I was stealing them from. Well, I figured it out, but I liked the description so well that I've carried it forward into Mystic Wings. It's from an Electronic song called "Get the Message" (yes, the band is really called Electronic). The song goes like this "I've always thought of you as my brick wall, built like an angel - six feet tall". So, I'm not going to pretend that I thought of it. I didn't. But rest assured that if I scam ideas from other sources, I'll say so. If I don't say anything, then it's unintentional. Cheers! 

Next, I'd like to thank Kaytala for beta reading - she's an angel, and everyone else who reviews. You guys steal my heart. And everyone who goes to the forum to ask questions will most certainly have their question answered! Don't stop reviewing though. I love reviews - doesn't everyone? Okay, so my forum is accessible through my profile page, and it's a hoot! Until next time ...


	12. Moth to the Flame

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I did write this story !

* * *

**Chapter Eleven**

**Moth to the Flame**

After Hitomi got off of Allen's motorcycle, she tried to go to her next class, but she was immediately called to the office where she was swiftly punished for leaving school grounds with a 'hot boy' on a motorcycle. Hitomi almost giggled when the gym coach called Allen a 'boy'. Yeah, he was a boy, all right. Unfortunately, Hitomi's smile didn't do anything for her and she got an extra week of detention on top of her first week for being cheeky. Hitomi tried to look submissive from there on, but it was difficult. It also didn't help her at all that she refused to give a reason for her misconduct. She simply said she'd take the detention, but after she left the office another thought hit her. Her dad wasn't going to like that she had detention one bit. Crap! She didn't really care how much trouble she got into at school as long as it didn't involve her father in any way. She didn't want to let him know she had been breaking school rules, or that she had been talking with Allen. Why didn't she think about these things?

However, even with all this going on, she still needed to make up her mind as to whether or not she was going to help Allen save Celena or not. She wanted to leave Allen hanging, but couldn't when she thought of poor Celena. He wanted her to go to The Voltage Room, but Hitomi definitely did not want to go there again. No way! Anytime she thought about it, she would feel Dilandau's fingers digging into her hips and she knew it was impossible. She couldn't explain what happened there with him when she was there last, and she was still feeling wretched. She felt like she'd cheated on Van on purpose … and with Dilandau no less. That made it SO much worse.

Besides, what was Allen going to accomplish talking to Dilandau? He would probably go berserk at the sight of Allen.

At last, she decided that if she, Hitomi, was able to corner Dilandau in just the right way – if she threatened to take The Voltage Room down to the last brick, that he might give her a clue about Van if not Celena. Hitomi didn't think that she and Allen had much hope of finding out anything about Celena, but she might be able to get some real information about Van if she went about things the right way.

Yeah, she didn't want to go, but now she had an idea about what could happen there if she was careful. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad … maybe.

Hitomi rolled the idea around in her head until Friday night. Friday was a good night. She didn't have to start attending after-school detention until the following Monday, so she wasn't going to break the good news to her dad until Sunday – the last possible day.

She telephoned Allen and told him that she would go with him to The Voltage Room as long as she could have two things.

"You sound exactly like Van," he commented over the phone. "He's always numbering the things that have to be done."

"Well, he is my …" then she stopped. What was she saying?

"He's your what?"

Hitomi's face burned. "My mentor," she finished, and hoped that Allen didn't catch the weirdness of her comment.

Allen started laughing, "You weren't going to say that originally, were you, Hitomi?"

"Well, then what was I going to say?"

"That he's your hero, right?"

"I wasn't going to say that," Hitomi feigned. Hero was a better choice than husband, so she took an easy breath.

He sighed, "I wouldn't blame you. He did save you from the Dragon Slayer hideout when they were going to use you for target practice, didn't he?"

"Yeah."

"So, don't worry about it. What are the two conditions?" he asked.

"I need your absolute assurance that we can leave when I say so. If I say we're leaving now, I don't want you slacking off. I don't care how close to getting Celena back you think you are. I say we're leaving and we leave, got it?"

"You're not in charge of this," Allen countered.

"If I'm not in charge of this then I don't go. It's that simple."

"You don't have the experience …" he started saying.

"I have the … what did you call it? The 'sway with Dilandau'. I'm dead serious. I have to have it my way or I'm not going."

"What's the other thing?"

"I have to have my dad's permission to go on a 'date' tonight," Hitomi confessed, thinking there wasn't a good chance that her father would let her out that night since he had let her go out the previous weekend. He was really strict.

"Should I bring flowers, Ma Chere?" Allen accented brightly.

"I'm gonna kill you," Hitomi said, half playfully.

"Even better, should I dress up? I mean, we _are_ going clubbing."

"Allen …" she began. She was starting to lose patience with him. He didn't understand what kind of a sacrifice it was for her to say she'd go to The Voltage Room at all. The experience she'd had with Dilandau the week before had honestly disrupted her whole peace of mind. She wasn't even able to feel at home with herself since it happened.

"Don't worry," he interrupted before she had the chance to tell him to go on his own. "I wouldn't want to date you, anyway. You're too young. What are you anyway? Seventeen?"

"Eighteen!"

"Whatever. Anyway, I would never touch a high school girl. It would totally crimp my style."

So, Allen had been whom Van got some of his cradle-robbing feelings from. Ah! That made sense. "It doesn't matter," Hitomi said, trying to get back on topic. "Can I have things my way? Can we leave when I say?"

"Anything … for a lady," he said in an ultra sexy low voice.

For a second Hitomi thought … well, she thought a lot of things. "Allen, I thought we talked about this. Either you cut the crap, or I'm bailing. I refuse to work with you if you won't treat me like a partner. This is the last time I'm talking to you about this. Besides, I'm not even sure if my father will agree to my having a night on the town with you. It's dangerous."

"I'm sorry, Hitomi. I didn't realize I was doing anything out of the ordinary. Will you forgive me?"

"Well …"

"Why don't you go ask your father and call me back when you have permission?" he drawled.

"Okay," Hitomi said, taking in a couple deep breaths.

She hung up the phone and went into the living room where her father was arranging his bookshelf in alphabetical order. It was six o'clock on a Friday night. Maybe he was feeling charitable. He didn't have to be at work until Monday, and she hadn't told him about her detention. Plus, she had come home at only ten thirty when she went out the weekend before. Was it possible she was still in his good graces?

"Dad," she started.

"Yeah, Hitomi," he said, turning around to look at her. "What is it?"

She bit her lip. Her father's eyes looked blue and clear, like nothing was bothering him. Hitomi hadn't seen him look like that for a long time, and she was about to break her promise to him for the third time, perhaps fourth or fifth time. She was crazy to do things that would make him worry about her, but as she bit her lip she thought about poor Celena with the syringe in her hand. There was no way Hitomi could blame Allen for wanting to go so far for her, and she wanted to help him. And then Van. She thought about Van and that clinched the deal for her.

"I was invited on a date tonight," she said slowly. "And I came to ask your permission if I could go."

He smiled. "You can go."

"Really?" Hitomi was astonished.

"I'm pleased that you came to ask me," he said, explaining his situation. "Lately, I've been worried that if you wanted something you wouldn't have the nerve to ask me because I've been such an ogre. I was starting to get worried that you would sooner sneak out of the apartment if you wanted to go somewhere than ask. Sure, you can go."

"Thank you, Dad," Hitomi said, suddenly feeling an intense swelling of guilt. She swallowed and forced herself to deal with it. Van said that they didn't lead normal lives, so she would have to live with the burden of being the way she was.

Allen didn't know it, but she was going to protect him tonight. Whatever happened, she was going to protect him.

* * *

Allen was going to pick Hitomi up at nine-thirty, so after she cleaned up the dishes from dinner she got in the shower and prepared to get ready. There was a school dance that night and Marlene was getting ready to go, so Hitomi didn't get the bathroom until after her sister was finished. 

"Are you going to the dance?" Marlene asked when Hitomi came into their bedroom with a towel on her head.

"Hadn't planned on it," she said, unconsciously sounding exactly like Van.

"But, didn't Dad say you had a date tonight? Weren't you guys planning on going to the dance?"

Hitomi looked at Marlene. She was obviously still miffed at Hitomi over something and there wasn't the faintest hint of sweetness in her sister's voice. As a matter of fact, the dance didn't even start for another hour and Marlene was totally ready to go. She was just bored; otherwise, Hitomi didn't think her sister would even talk to her.

"Well, he didn't say where we were going," Hitomi said slowly.

"Your date?"

"Yeah. Hey, Marlene, why don't you help me pick something to wear?" Hitomi suggested, thinking it might help strengthen their sisterly bonds. "I haven't been out for so long; I can hardly remember how people dress," she said, while fluffing her not-so-short hair with her towel. She had been thinking of getting it cut.

"Let's see," Marlene said, looking interested and combing through Hitomi's half of the closet.

What Marlene picked for her, Hitomi would have never picked for herself, but she decided to bear it for the sake of sisterly love … or something like that. She got herself dressed and looked in the mirror. Hitomi liked something that was more athletic, and what Marlene picked for her wasn't even out of her side of the closet. Marlene had picked out her own clothes and told Hitomi to put them on.

Hitomi was wearing brown little girl shoes with white knee stockings, a brown and cream plaid skirt with a white button-up-the-front shirt. It was like her school uniform and somehow … not. And she was supposed to wear this to The Voltage Room? Hitomi was pink as she looked in the mirror.

But Marlene didn't seem to notice, because now she was twisting Hitomi's hair in her fingers and turning her towards her.

"You need your bangs cut, my dear," Marlene observed, taking a pair of scissors in her hand. "I'll give you a trim if you'll sit still. You're starting to go wild."

"I suppose you're going to pluck my eyebrows next," Hitomi said, after giving her fifteen-year-old sister permission to cut her bangs.

"I wasn't going to say anything, but you really need that done, too. I mean, no wonder everyone thinks you're so dangerous. If you dressed up more you'd look like a mafia princess instead of like a thug."

"Interesting choice of words," Hitomi thought, thinking of how hard she was fighting _against _a syndicate.

_Snip._

"I was thinking of having you wear the sleeveless white shirt instead, because then it would show off your tattoo," Marlene was saying.

_Snap._

"Everyone thinks it's too cool, even though they're a little intimidated. But, I thought it would be better if we highlighted your good side instead of accentuating the badass you appear to be. I'm sure your date wants to be with a nice girl."

_Snip._

"Also, that shirt has little ties up in the front. I didn't think there was a chance I could get you to wear something that had anything resembling a bow anywhere on it."

_Snap._

"There - all done!" Marlene proclaimed.

"I want to see," Hitomi said, turning her head, but Marlene stopped her.

"Not until I've plucked your eyebrows. You'll be amazed at how different you look after I finish that. You might actually look polished instead of like a tomboy."

"I am a tomboy!" Hitomi said.

"Who are you going out with tonight, anyway? I was thinking that it could only be one person, but …"

"But what?"

"I didn't think you'd risk your neck for him," Marlene said taking the tweezers in her hand.

"Who?"

"Mr. Fassa," Marlene answered.

"Oh, yeah, Dryden. He didn't ask me."

"Really? That surprises me. He seems to take the time to stop and talk to you quite regularly. Are you sure he's not interested?"

"Ouch!" Hitomi squeaked when Marlene finally started.

"Please don't make any noise," she said. "It's distracting."

"Are you really this excited to be a teenager, Marlene?" Hitomi interjected between violent pinches.

"What are you talking about?" Marlene asked.

Hitomi had been thinking about Marlene's boyfriend that she kept secret from their parents, and the trouble her little sister had obviously gone to in order to prepare herself for the dance. She looked like the girl on the cover of this months' teenager magazine. Hitomi had never seen her like this before. Granted, she had been away for months, and this was her sister's first year in high school. Maybe this was a natural transition for her sister to go through and Hitomi had never gone through this stage, or perhaps she had and not noticed it.

Finally, Marlene let her look in the mirror. Hitomi was totally blown away by what she saw there. She didn't look like herself at all, but like a really pretty girl, maybe even at the height of fashion. Marlene had cut her bangs perfectly, and besides a few red marks by her eyebrows, they looked great, too.

Would Van have liked how she looked? Would he even have recognized her now that her hair was long enough to pull into a ponytail?

"Thanks," Hitomi said, giving Marlene a side hug.

"You look better. One step closer to mafia princess – that's the goal." Then she smiled at Hitomi and left the room – their father was calling them.

"Hitomi!" Hitomi's mother said, opening the door. "You look different," she observed. "Your date is downstairs. Your dad is making him come up to meet us. Marlene's date is here, too. Wanna meet him?"

Hitomi nodded, and came quickly into the entryway.

There was Marlene's date. A gawky boy of sixteen who looked like he was twelve, compared with Marlene's flowering femininity and sophistication. He was blushing madly and looking so nervous that he was going to fall over himself in ecstasy. Hitomi didn't recognize him, but she felt a flush of relief at the sight of him. He looked like a baby. He couldn't be causing Marlene any trouble. After tonight, Hitomi would talk to Marlene about sneaking off to meet him. There was no point in being secretive for a kid like that. She might as well date him in the open.

Then there was a casual knock and Marlene answered the door. There was Allen. He came in with a nonchalant curve of his lips and stood over a head taller than the boy who was taking Marlene. Marlene had been talking to her date with complete composure, but when Allen came through the door, he probably looked like an angel to Marlene too, because she was turning pink and smiling brightly up at him like she had never seen a man before in her life.

Allen was wearing a long black leather jacket with a shiny grey shirt under it and heavy black boots. His blonde hair was down and falling roughly down his back. Yeah, he was no teenager. Compared with Marlene's date he looked like a movie star out of the latest blockbuster, and his orange sunglasses were helping nothing. Neither was the leather stud choker around his throat.

Hitomi looked at him and groaned. Her father was never going to let her out of the house.

"Mom, Dad, this is Allen Schezar," Hitomi said, unceremoniously. "Hey Allen, I need to get my bag out of my room. I'll be right back."

Hitomi didn't normally carry a purse of any kind, but she needed to bring a pair of pants with her. Her shoes and top were fine, but she couldn't walk into The Voltage Room looking like a schoolgirl. It would just be too painful, especially since she planned to go jump the bouncers again. She grabbed some lightweight black pants. They would fit into a small purse without complication, but it might be a cold night on the back of Allen's motorcycle. She guessed that was what the knee-high socks were for – keeping her from freezing her butt off.

When Hitomi came back into the entryway her father was asking Allen in the crustiest tone of voice, "Where are you planning on taking my daughter?"

"You're coming to the dance tonight, aren't you?" Marlene asked Allen, catching his eye.

Allen looked at Hitomi for guidance. "Did you want to go to the dance?"

"Just dinner, please," Hitomi said, putting on her jacket.

"Aw, Allen," Marlene was saying, ignoring her little date completely and almost physically cuddling up to Allen, "Convince Hitomi to come to the dance. It'll be fun."

Hitomi was just about to call Marlene on her poor behaviour when she remembered what Allen had just told her about his thoughts on dating high school girls. Allen was probably disgusted with Marlene if he felt that way, so there was no need for Hitomi to call attention to it. All she had to do was make it clear that they weren't going to go to the lame little high school dance.

To Hitomi's surprise, Allen was looking at her and asking, "Do you want to make an appearance?"

"Yeah, we'd probably get kicked out," Hitomi scoffed.

"That could be fun," Allen said, with odd lights in his eyes. He was talking to Hitomi, but he was looking at Marlene.

"Yo Allen," Hitomi said, bringing his eyes in line with hers. "Dinner?" she reminded him.

"Yeah, dinner," he said shaking his head and taking Marlene's hand. "It was lovely to meet you. I don't think you told me your name, Angel?"

"It's Marlene," the blonde girl bobbed.

"Ah," he said, kissing her hand. "The name of an angel."

"Allen," Hitomi said, putting her hand on her hip and pushing him out the door. "You don't need to be that friendly with my sister, especially not in front of her date. Let's go!"

"Wait! Hitomi!" her father called.

Hitomi did a double take and poked her head back into the apartment. "Yes?" She was positive she was going to get told that she couldn't go out with Allen now. He had dressed so … Hitomi was lost for words to describe how Allen looked. He dressed to play up all his good points, and as the man had quite a few, doubtless he looked imposing to paranoid parents. Not only that, but he appeared to be putting the moves on her little sister. It definitely looked bad, and there was no way her parents were going to let her out now.

"When will you be home?" her mother said quickly, intervening on Hitomi's behalf. She looked amused, and her action showed that she was looking out for Hitomi's interests.

"Not late," Hitomi said, trying to make her outing with Allen seem sensible. Hitomi thought it was impossible though for the two of them to ward off her father's fears, and she knew that her mother was going to have a bad hour with him after they left. The situation looked too grotesque for her to talk her way out of it. She didn't even want to try. At this point, she just wanted to take her mother's sacrifice for what it was and hope that she and Allen would be able to find out something about Van, or Celena, or both before the end of the night. Even if things went terribly wrong, if they did a good thing and rescued someone, she might earn vindication from her father. Maybe …

"Have a good time," her mother called cheerfully, and linked arms with her father as Hitomi closed the doors and thanked her lucky stars that her mother understood.

But as soon as Hitomi and Allen were in the elevator going down to the main level, she bonked him on the head with her bag, which took some winding up to do. "Allen, are you really this stupid? Why did you agree to come up to the apartment at all? You should have known better than to introduce yourself to my parents. Of all the stupid …"

"I couldn't take you out without letting your father know that you would be all right in my care. It would have been … boorish."

"Did you say something to him while I was in the bedroom?"

"Naturally," Allen said, his eyebrows draw together seriously.

Hitomi sighed. "I realize that you try to be a gentleman in your own way, but couldn't you have left the spike collar off until I was downstairs? I thought my father would have a heart attack when he saw you. Was wearing that a good way to let him know that I'd be safe in your hands? I didn't think so, either."

"Yeah, well, I can't pretend to be something I'm not. That would be even worse."

"I find your logic dizzying," Hitomi said, thinking while looking at him that she was lucky she hadn't met him before Van. Eries was completely right about him. He did things that made girls want to fall in love with him, but whether or not he really meant them was another matter entirely. He was too flirtatious, too gallant, and too ready to take any hardship onto his shoulders – yet something about him wasn't right. It was like there was a part of him that was missing and he filled it with the adoring looks of the females he spoke to. Hitomi wouldn't have recognized all this about him at first glance. She certainly didn't notice all of it when she was part of the Abaharaki and living with Van. It was only because Eries talked so much about him and now that she'd seen him in action a couple times that the answer to his motives became clear. "And don't hit on Marlene," Hitomi said. "I'm not even joking. She's a little girl, even though she doesn't look it, and she doesn't understand the game you play at all. She probably won't be able to pay attention to the nice boy who's taking her out tonight because you drew her eyes towards you so forcefully."

"Did I?"

"Look, she couldn't help be attracted to you at first sight, and you know it. Of course you look absolutely dazzling to someone with no experience, like her. You shouldn't let her adoration go to your head. She'd be thrilled with anyone of your age and experience. Anyone would seem interesting! And why would you even suggest that we go to a high school dance?"

"It might be a fun story to tell later," he said off-handedly.

"I'm sure," Hitomi said sarcastically.

"Give it a rest," he said bringing his hand up to his mouth as he yawned. "You're starting to sound like Eries, and you know how she tires me."

"Excuse me! I'm doing _you_ a favour, not the other way around."

"Lighten up," he said, for once looking at her and talking to her and not seeming at all like he was coming onto her. "Would it help if I apologized to you?"

Hitomi felt embarrassed. She guessed that he really hadn't done anything very wrong. "No. Forget it. I'm being ridiculous. I shouldn't be so touchy. Let's just go and get this over with. I still don't exactly want to go. Dilandau really freaked me out when I went there last. I'm really tense. If I didn't truly believe in my heart that Celena wanted to be rescued, and that I could try pumping Dilandau for more information about Van, then I wouldn't be doing this at all. I just can't sit around in my bedroom while Dilandau is having everything his own way."

"There's a good girl," Allen said, looking at Hitomi admiringly as he stepped into the lobby with Hitomi behind him.

* * *

Outside The Voltage Room was as crowded, even more so than it had been the night Hitomi went to speak to Dilandau. Hitomi was worried as she sat on the back of Allen's motorcycle that he might say something else about the high school dance, but he didn't say anything, and proceeded onto The Voltage Room with a steady determination. Maybe he had only been polite when he spoke to Marlene. 

After Allen took his helmet off, he said to Hitomi, "I don't know if this is going to make a difference."

"What?" Hitomi asked, pulling her pants on under her skirt. She pulled the skirt clean off her once her pants were zipped.

He pulled out a gun and handed it to her.

Hitomi looked at it grimly and then looked at Allen. "Do you have one?" she asked.

"Two," Allen admitted hesitantly. "It's just in case."

"Just in case, what?"

"Just in case you need it."

Hitomi looked in his eyes. Allen was easy to interpret. He hadn't used to be, but since Van – everything always turned to Van. Since Van and Eries had spent so much time with her, she understood Allen. He just wanted her to be safe and he didn't want her to be left helpless if he wasn't beside her the entire time.

"I don't like this, Allen," she said, taking the gun and tucking it in the back of her pants and pulling her jacket over it. "I don't like this one bit."

"But you'll carry it?"

"As long as you remember your promise to me that we'll leave when I say, then I won't need to," she said. "Come on. We've got a lot of work to do." She tucked her skirt into the back of his bike and put her feet to the pavement.

Allen followed her, but he seemed a little hesitant.

"Hitomi," he said quietly after they had walked a bit. "You seem different. You've gotta tell me. Why didn't Van want you to be part of the Abaharaki anymore?"

"I thought I told you."

"Your excuse just doesn't seem to fit. How about we try again? What was the reason?"

Hitomi sighed, but then she said, "He thought you'd use me - looks like he was right, doesn't it?"

"I guess you don't care what Van says, then."

"Why?"

"Because you're going against his wishes."

"Don't worry about that. He's not really going along with my wishes. Are you sure you don't know what happened to him?"

Allen shook his head wearily. "I said before, and I really don't have any idea."  
"And your sister takes precedence?"

"You make me sound very self serving," he said testily.

"Well, let's do our best to feel Dilandau out and figure out what to do. Okay, let's talk about this seriously. I don't want you to come to the table to talk to Dilly with me. If you do, he'll send us away without hesitating. You go find some girls to dance with while I talk to him. That should be easy for you. I'll send for you if I think I could use the back up. Got it?"

"Dilly?" Allen repeated uneasily. "You act like you really know what you're doing - like you're running the show," he said, grabbing her shoulders and bringing her around to face him. "Don't you think I have a plan?"

Hitomi huffed. "Allen, if you go in there half cocked, we're both dead. Do you think the Dragon Slayers are willing to make many more excuses for you? Do you think you would have been safe the whole time you were in their custody if it hadn't been for Van and Celena's combined sacrifice? You wanted to know why Van doesn't want you to talk to me. Well, you're about to find out the reason."

"You don't even want to hear my plan then?"

Hitomi's eyebrows went up. "Were you just going to run in, grab Dilandau by the collar and tell him that he'd better tell you where Celena is, or you'll kill him?"

Allen coloured.

"I know you like being that straight-forward. Van mentioned that you were like that, but listen to me. This is a Dragon Slayer club – a D-r-a-g-o-n S-l-a-y-e-r club – everyone there is a Dragon Slayer. Every last one of them is totally devoted to Dilandau. Don't say it," Hitomi said, raising her hand to stop Allen from speaking. "I know, I know, none of you thought that Dilandau was really such a big fish back in the day, but he's one now, so we have to deal with him properly and carefully."

"So, what are you going to ask him?"

"I'll have to feel him out."

"And how are you going to do that?" he asked.

Hitomi winked at Allen, not willing to tell him that she was going to threaten to raze The Voltage Room – Hitomi style, and said, "The way only a woman can."

"I'd like to see that," Allen said, letting go of Hitomi and following her along the sidewalk.

* * *

Author's Notes: In the next chapter, they actually go in - cool eh? 

Anyway, thanks to Kaytala for betaing. She's a gem. And thanks to everyone who reads and reviews. Without you - I wouldn't bother, so thank you very much. YOU GUYS ROCK MY WORLD! And as always, the forum for this chapter is already up - remember this chapter is chapter 11 and not 12 like the scroll bar says. It's accessable through my profile. And if you see something you don't like in my writing, please lay it on me. I'm trying to improve so bring it! Cheers!


	13. Raze the Pressure

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, Iris, Waves Crash In, or anything much. Cheers!

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

**Raze the Pressure**

_Featuring "Waves Crash In" by Iris_

_

* * *

_

The crowd outside The Voltage Room was insane that night. The lineup went down the block and almost around the corner. Hitomi approached the bouncers as she had the week before. Maybe she had been removed from the guest list, but she had to give it a try. Hopefully, neither of them would recognize Allen.

"Hi," Hitomi said, attracting one of the bouncer's attention.

"No cutting line," he said back to her. He wasn't one of the ones she had met the last time she was here.

"Do you have a guest list?" she asked noisily, ignoring what he said to her. "I'm probably on it."

"What's your name?" he asked, consulting his clipboard.

"Hitomi Kanzaki."

He scanned the list until he found her name. It was close to the top. "You must be here to see _him_, eh? Go on in."

So, she was still on their guest list? That was considerate of Dilandau, now wasn't it? Giving her such easy access to one of their dens.

Hitomi grabbed Allen's hand and dragged him in with her. She told the bouncers that he was with her, and again managed to skirt the lineup outside. There were blood-curdling yells from the kids waiting in the line this time. What was the big deal? Why were there so many people trying to get in?

"Wow, Hitomi!" Allen yelled into her ear. "That was incredible! I can't believe how smooth that was."

"Yeah," Hitomi agreed, still wondering why Dilandau was giving her an open invitation to visit whenever she wanted.

When the two of them stepped onto the floor, it was obvious why it was a special night. There was live entertainment. It was an electronic band playing. There were so many people crowding the stage that it was nearly impossible to see who was performing but the lead singer stood closer on the stage to where Hitomi and Allen were standing. If the music hadn't been so good, Hitomi didn't think she would have bothered to see who was singing, but as it was, she tried to get a look.

The lead singer was a man, and from that distance Hitomi couldn't see much about him. His hair was cut short on top and spiked and it was longer in the back, like a mullet, except cool – like the yakuza in the manga she'd been reading. He was wearing sunglasses, obviously as protection from the harsh stage lights, and pants so tight Hitomi was impressed that he could walk. They seemed to fit. His voice was amazing. _That_ couldn't be a machine. That had to be all him. And he was amazing. Something about what he was singing and the tone of his voice made her want to give up on talking to Dilandau and just dance.

Allen's hand tightened around hers. "There he is," Allen said, indicating the table in the corner Dilandau had been sitting at last time. There was a woman on Dilandau's arm as usual and two men sitting across from him.

It was then that an idea sprang into Hitomi's head. She asked Allen a question. "Did you ever meet Folken?"

"No," Allen said. "Have you?"

"No, but I was just wondering if one of those men sitting with Dilandau could be him."

"I don't think so," Allen said, looking serious, but still holding onto Hitomi's hand. "From what I've seen, Folken doesn't really go out. Are you ready?" Allen asked, obviously completely unaffected by the music or the atmosphere of excitement in the club. It was business for him and he wasn't going to give Hitomi any time to play, but he was still clenching Hitomi's hand in what felt like a fist. He was trying to give her confidence. There was nothing romantic about the way he encouraged her. She was happy that he kept his side of the bargain.

Hitomi let go of his hand, rounded her shoulders and cracked her neck. Tonight wasn't going to be a good night. And she shouldn't dance. She should just march over to Dilandau's table and get this over with.

Raze the building … Van would have been better at it. Well, there had to be a way to make her power destructive. Thus far, the best she'd been able to do with her power was counter Van's fire. Maybe her threat to Dilandau would be an empty one, but he didn't have to know that. And she just needed to get one fact out of him. Whether it was about Van or Celena didn't matter to her. She told herself that they were connected, and that if she found Van, she'd find Celena and vice versa. She didn't know why she thought they were together, no matter where they were, but she did.

"Okay, Allen," she said, forcing her courage to the sticking point. "Go cuddle up with some chicks, while I go have a talk with Dilly. Keep your eyes on me, and if I make a peace sign with my fingers, come running, okay?"

"A peace sign? Got it! But I don't like sending you in like this. It seems underhanded and cowardly to me."

"Shut up. I wasn't a quarter this confident when I came to see him last week. With you here, I won't be afraid at all, and I have a better chance of actually getting somewhere with him. Work with me, ne?" Hitomi said, looking into Allen's eyes and trying to make him feel more certain that they were going about this the right way. "Don't let yourself falter."

"Okay," he said, moving away to find a group to dance with.

Hitomi watched him go and then made her way around the standing knots of people and the tables set out for patrons. It seemed like an awfully long way to Dilandau's table and her heart was up in her throat. Even though she had told Allen that she was better this time than she had been last time, she had lied. She was much worse this time. As she walked, she kept thinking she saw Van every step she took. It was brutal, but she wouldn't let herself deter. She couldn't. She also thought that Allen wasn't going to be any help at all. There were so many people here that if she needed immediate assistance, he wouldn't be able to get to her quickly.

Dilly was sitting in a booth, as he had been the other night. So, she couldn't walk up behind him, which is what she would have liked to do. Instead, she had to introduce herself. He would see her walk up and everything.

It was hot!

Hitomi undid the top two buttons on her shirt and then the bottom two. She definitely didn't look right for clubbing. That's what she got for letting Marlene dress her. She thought undoing the buttons would make her feel more sure of herself, but instead it just reminded her how unprepared she was to meet Dilandau.

And why did she have this disgusting feeling in her heart? This reckless wish that he would become Van for her again … It was sick … and stupid. It was what she had been thinking of in the back of her head for the week that she had been at school … that even though Dilandau had scared her before, she wanted to see Van again. She had been hoping that a reason for her to come to The Voltage Room would come again, even though she knew that it was not a good idea. She had been hiding it from herself, but she wanted to look her best in case … what? In case he turned into Van again? It was foolish. She was asking for it. Nothing good could come from this confrontation – not if she approached it _this_ way. Dilandau could wear Van's face, but he could never be Van. She needed to remember that and become solid in her beliefs, but could she prepare herself to meet with Dilandau in the thirty seconds it took her to approach his table? Thirty seconds wasn't much time for her to make up her mind to be strong, but these were the last moments she had.

And they were up!

Hitomi came up to the table.

The two men sitting opposite Dilandau did not appear to be little punks, but instead businessmen of the highest order. Dilandau didn't see her approach, as he was engrossed with their conversation.

"Like I said," he said noisily. "He's not for sale. He only performs here, and only when he wants to. I can't keep him on a schedule. Not only that, but as I have explained, he's not interested."

"But what about all those kids waiting outside to get in? If he made his music accessible to everyone by making an album, then no one would be disappointed," one of the businessmen was saying.

"Precious things lose their value if they become available to everyone. Isn't that right, Hitomi?" Dilandau said, noticing her and signaling for her to come closer.

Hitomi came up and smiled as though she and Dilandau were friends.

"You look great tonight Tomi! Doesn't she look great?" he asked one of the businessmen – who readily agreed that she looked phenomenal. Dilandau's voice was pleasant to the extreme, and Hitomi realized that it was only for the benefit of his company. He was working, so he had to act congenial. "You got your hair cut, ne? Since last week? Good work! Hey, I'm almost finished with Tyler and Daniel here, could I meet you at the bar?"

Hitomi nodded. "Nice to meet you," she said to the businessmen, before heading towards the bar. There was no point jumping the gun.

She plopped herself on the only empty bar stool. It had only just been vacated by a girl who was being literally carried out by a bouncer. She hadn't been drinking too much, but she had fainted on the dance floor (apparently) because she was so excited to see the guy who was singing. Was he really _that_ good?

The barkeep asked Hitomi what she wanted and she ordered a bottle of water. Her powers worked better when she was hydrated, or at least she thought so. When she asked Van, he said he didn't know.

Allen was sitting at a table with a group of girls to Hitomi's left. It looked like only one of them was talking to him. The others were standing on their tippy-toes to get a look at the stage.

The song was wrapping up and the applause seemed to last forever. Hitomi found herself clapping too, though it was a little overpowering. The singer was great, but were all of these people Dragon Slayers? Hitomi thought they had to be because they sounded just like they had in the stadium. It was terrifying, but Hitomi kept one eye on Allen and the other on Dilandau … who was now making his way over to the bar.

He told the guy sitting beside Hitomi to scram, which he promptly did, and he sat next to her. "You really do look good, Hitomi. That look really suites you. So, tell me, why have you come to visit me again? I thought you'd never come back after you saw what Van was really like."

"That wasn't Van," Hitomi said confidently.

"He sure looked like Van from where I was standing."

Hitomi didn't believe Dilandau for one second. "I thought you'd be a better kisser," she commented dryly.

He smirked, amused by her statement. "So, what did you come here for? Hoping to get to second base with _Van_ this time? Or perhaps third? I might be able to arrange it, if … you ask nicely," he joked cruelly, still pretending it wasn't him who had kissed her, before calling the bartender and ordering a drink.

Hitomi looked into his pitiless rouge eyes and she wanted to whack him, or worse, but she kept a handle on herself, and opened her mouth to ask about Van and Celena when something caught Dilandau's eye and he turned away.

"What's _he_ doing here?" he said, looking squarely at Allen. "The bouncers are clearly not doing their job," he said, almost spitting and turning again to Hitomi. "Or … did you bring him in with you?"

_Oh hell!_ Hitomi couldn't answer. She was absolutely speechless. It was all over now, just as she'd feared. "He won't cause any trouble," she heard herself claiming. "It's true I brought him, but that was because he didn't want me to come alone."

"If he's your dog," Dilandau was saying, "then you'd better keep him on a leash." The bartender gave Dilandau his shot and he gulped it. Setting the glass firmly on the smooth counter, he continued, "What did you come here for really, Hitomi? And why did Allen think it necessary for you to bring him? Speak fast. I don't really have time for this tonight."

"Because of the live entertainment? Whoever you've got playing, he definitely draws a crowd," Hitomi observed.

"Bloody Hell!" Dilandau exclaimed. "For fucks' sake, get on with it. Why are you here? I'm guessing you don't want to join us, so … fill in the blank."

"I want Van and Celena back, and I want them back right now," she said, trying her best to sound confident. Her speech hadn't sounded good, though. She doubted she was convincing.

"You've got to be kidding me! I told you – Van joined us of his own free will. We made a deal with him. He's no longer our enemy and he's working with Folken. And Celena …" he said, taking a deep breath and taking Hitomi's chin in the palm of his hand before continuing, "is my woman. Believe it or not, she came to me and she stays with me because she's in love with me."

"You're a liar," Hitomi said, grabbing his thumb and jolting his hand away from her face. "She had a gun pointed to your chest. She doesn't love you!"

Dilandau wound up and slapped her. Hitomi's head reeled and her mouth hung open. She couldn't believe that he had done that in such a public arena. It was shock more than pain that dropped her on her butt beside her stool.

Hitomi jumped to her feet, her fighting spirit was ignited now if it hadn't been before. Dilandau was standing now, too, and Allen was at Hitomi's side, his hand reaching for his gun. Hitomi pushed Allen behind her and confronted Dilandau.

"Look," she shouted. "I'm not leaving empty handed. Either let me talk to Van or Celena or I'll blow this friggin club of yours to Neptune before dawn!" Hitomi suddenly hesitated. Her voice was loud and she had said such a forceful thing in between songs. The voices in the club were completely muffled as every single person in the club heard what she said and had turned to look at her and Dilandau. Why had she said Neptune? So lame … but she didn't have time to correct it now. And she was totally screwed.

"So, you just wanna see Van … that's it?" Dilandau asked, sounding again like the experienced businessman.

It was too late to regain her composure and she simply nodded.

"Well, let me have my associates escort you to him. And why has the music stopped? Play something _appropriate_!" Dilandau called quite clearly to the band on the stage, and he stepped aside.

There was no way he was sending for people to take them to Van or Celena, but to … throw them out? Kill them? Who knew?

This was definitely not good. Where were the guys coming from? Most everyone had turned back to the performers as they struck up the opening cords and stopped paying attention to what was happening with Allen and Hitomi. Why should they care, they were all Dragon Slayers?  
Finally, Hitomi saw them. There were six guys dressed in black T-shirts with black pants. They had headsets on and their beautiful black hair was falling into their hot chocolate brown eyes. Okay, so Hitomi didn't see that their eyes were that colour from that distance, but she knew they had to be, because they all looked like Van.

_The perfectness of this night  
Echoes with the calling of your name  
You should be here with this this way  
I could destruct  
I could hang on  
But what is the difference now you're gone_

"Run for it!" Hitomi said to Allen, as she pushed him towards the doors. "The kitchen! Head for the kitchen!" she shouted, knowing that the entrance would still be crowded with hopeful kids. Hitomi reached for her gun and kept it clenched in her right hand.

Allen pushed people out of their way as they hurried to the other side of the bar with Dilandau's 'associates' in hot pursuit. Allen and Hitomi burst into the kitchen. It was packed with the cooking and cleaning staff, but virtually deserted compared with the dance floor.

"That way!" Allen yelled, seeing the way out. He grabbed Hitomi's hand and pulled her around the workers. One man tried to stop them and Allen knocked him down most brutally by hitting him on the head with his pistol barrel.

Hitomi looked behind her and saw that all six of the Vans had now made it into the kitchen. And it looked like they were activating some sort of mechanism that would lock the door and trap her and Allen in the kitchen. It looked like there was only time for one of them to get through.

They made it to the door and Hitomi aggressively threw Allen through the back door before the lock came down. There was one second once Allen was outside that he turned and realized that Hitomi meant to be locked inside. His eyes were wide in horror, but the door clamped shut before he could do anything.

_  
I see the stars and the waves crash in  
I know that's where you are  
Under a midnight sky that's set to fall  
Let the sirens call  
_

Hitomi turned around and saw the six Vans approaching her. So, it wasn't just Dilandau who was able to do this. Hitomi didn't understand what was going on, but she was going to have to take on six Vans. She didn't have any time to prepare, and she wasn't totally comfortable with combat, but she guessed that her powers would have to make up the difference for her.

She dropped the gun into her inside coat pocket and let the ice fall to her fingers.

The boys weren't in a hurry and they took their time coming towards her, but she wasn't afraid. For some reason, because they looked like Van, she knew there was no reason for her to be afraid. He was so beautiful.

_  
I reach out to space and you are fading  
From your ocean skies lay the  
something suffocating_

And the dance music that was blearing into the kitchen was only fueling her. Her heart beat just right.

_  
Let heaven fall, hurry the sign  
Lace the food and wine  
And take this feeling back to where it came from  
_

Her crystal mittens were not what they had been before, covering her fingers with snowflakes. This time, heavy thick sharp crystals that encased her fists like brass knuckles, except jagged with ice. She had to fight them one-on-one, because she had to ask the last one where Van was. This was her last chance to get some answers out of the Dragon Slayers. Maybe one of them knew something. Yet fighting six guys was going to be difficult. She was athletic, but she wasn't used to combat. She'd have to narrow the playing field a little, and there wasn't much room to fight between the countertops.

She wasn't sure how far she ought to go, but she couldn't take on more than one at a time. If they were built like Van, maybe she wouldn't even be able to box one of them fairly. With her advantage, maybe she could take two. She decided to try to scare a few of them off with her first attack on the guy who attacked first.

It was a pity he looked like Van, but she'd have to go through with it anyway.

The first one hesitated. He was looking at her hands and trying to assess what was happening when she slugged him. Her fist skidded across his cheek and there was blood. He staggered to the floor and was kneeling in front of her.

Hitomi was breathing hard. This was terrifying. She wasn't a violent person, but so far she'd been forced to be … she didn't like it and she was faltering.

The man reached out for Hitomi's leg, and she reacted. With the toe of her little girl shoe, she kicked him in the solar plexus and sent him sprawling.

The five guys remaining looked at her like they didn't believe what had just happened. Hitomi couldn't believe it herself. She wasn't violent. What was she doing? But now it was too late, she had to try to find out what had really happened to Van. They could be torturing him. They might have killed him. She had to find out!

"I'm looking for Van Fanel," she said. "Tell me where Dilandau is keeping him."

None of them answered her, and none of them looked scared enough of her to run.

She unleashed an ice bolt – exactly like the one she had when she fought Dilandau the first time, except there was no wind behind her. Van wasn't standing behind her _this_ time.

_  
I see the stars and the waves crash in  
I know that's where you are  
Under a midnight sky that's set to fall_

As the yellow and blue light dissipated, the kitchen staff and all but one of the men she was fighting ran from the room shrieking things about a demon, but Hitomi didn't pay attention to them as her face and shirt were now splattered with ice. The kitchen was a mess, but the drywall wasn't blown off the way it had back at the other hideout. Hitomi supposed that was because Van wasn't there. Pity. She really did want to take this place down to the last bolt.

And there was only one more left for her to face – one more left for her to get answers from. He looked almost like he would rather run from the room than face her, but he was an experienced fighter and Hitomi knew his defeat was going to be extremely challenging.

"Where's Van?" she hollered, thinking this was her last chance to get some information out of somebody. "Tell me!"

He didn't answer her, but concentrated on where her punches were coming from.

"TELL ME!" she bellowed, corning him against the wall and actually hitting the wall beside his head, narrowly missing his face. "Tell me or I'll …"

He started to mouth something, and she was trying to pay attention to what he was attempting to communicate to her when he suddenly kicked her in the stomach – a girl's sensitive spot – and sent her sprawling on the wet floor. In a moment he was on top of her, sitting on her stomach with his knees on either side of her. Her stomach was bear because she had undone the bottom two buttons. He grabbed her face between his fingers and brought her eyes to look into his. Hot chocolate brown … gorgeous.

"You're not Van," she said, tears of pain springing to her eyes. "I'll never be fooled again." She reached up with her fist and punched him in the face – not exactly hard – it didn't need to be hard to be effective.

He fell off her, and she got up. She found the courage, and even though it hurt her to do it she kicked him in the stomach, paralyzing him, and searched his pockets until she found his electronic keys and opened the door.

"You should have answered my question," she said, opening the door and looking back one last time, to see, not Van, but a blonde haired boy lying on the floor.

_I'll be lifted though it leads me up  
Though it leaves you far away  
All the lights begin  
To descend again_

Hitomi had only had thirty seconds to prepare for the moment when she would meet Van, or Dilandau looking like him, but she felt like she was successful at overcoming her fear in the end. She had wanted to kiss that boy when he pinned her. She missed Van so much, but she had resisted the compulsion, and was rewarded now, by seeing that he wasn't – that none of them were – Van.

She felt empowered as she stepped through the door.

_  
And the waves crash in_

_

* * *

_

Author's Notes: Okay, first off I have to say again that I'm not quite sure if these are the correct lyrics for "Waves Crash In". Once again, these guys aren't exactly mainstream, and their lyrics are just as precious as Brave New Waves'. They're ADD boys (A Different Drum) and they rock my world! But if anyone goes to download this song, let me tell you right now, get the version off the album Reconnect instead of Disconnect. The version off Disconnect is fine, but the dance mix off Reconnect is hardercore and hotter considering the club background, so find that version instead, k? 

Thanks be to Kaytala for beta reading - she's really talented. And big warm hugs for everyone who reads and reviews. I'm not about to stop updating or something, but reviewers really help keep my excitement about the story, so to all of them, I am exceedingly grateful.

The topic thread for chapter twelve is open on my forum as well. That is accessable through my profile, but you all know that cause I've said it fifteen times. Anyway, I feel like the ultimate cheeseball, so I'm gonna go now. Cheers! Love is all around the world!


	14. The Guidance Counselor

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I'm getting pissed off over how slowly this is getting uploaded, so I'm gonna update more often. Cheers!**  
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* * *

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**Chapter Thirteen**

**The Guidance Counselor**

After Hitomi scared the living daylights out of the kitchen staff and beat up two of Dilandau's henchmen, she fled into the night, and into the arms of a very angry Allen. He was furious at her for what she had done. He held onto her upper arms and shook her while her crystals silently dripped from her white knuckles onto the pavement. She was glad Allen didn't notice. She knew she had frostbite for what she had done – the price she paid for being inexperienced.

Allen wasn't upset that she had been the cause of two young men having to see an underground doctor, but that she had shut him out of the fight completely. He didn't understand how she had been able to accomplish what she had, but he insisted that they flee the scene immediately, just in case some of Dilandau's 'other friends' came out to take revenge.

One thing was for sure, Hitomi could never come back to The Voltage Room, and she didn't care. Now she was completely convinced that the road to finding Van did not start there. Van said that he would come back to her. She'd have to trust that.

Hitomi got on the back of Allen's motorcycle and tried to understand the expediency in which they had to leave, but she was having a hard time keeping herself awake. After they had ridden a block, Allen stopped and put her in front of him on the bike, because she kept sliding around. She was so tired and she was losing her balance.

She leaned back on his chest and warned drowsily, "Don't hit on me, Allen, or I'll …"

"I'm sure," he said gently, smiling his amused half-smile. "Like I could really steal Van's girlfriend."

But Hitomi was too tired to answer, or even realize what it was he had actually admitted to knowing. Her eyes felt so heavy.

Hitomi didn't know how long they drove, but soon the motorcycle stopped and Allen was carrying her with her knees and ankles draped over his forearm. He placed her in the front of a vehicle. It smelled funny, and it roused Hitomi's senses enough to wake her up.

"Where are we?" she asked, when Allen got into the driver's seat. Then Hitomi recognized it. It was the old truck that had been parked behind Van's house. "Didn't this burn up along with the house?"

"My motorcycle was parked at the house too, and it didn't burn, either. The fire department got there in time. They saved everything."

How had they gotten there so quickly? Hitomi guessed that it was because she had called for an ambulance and the building was on fire by the time they got there. Then the ambulance personnel called the fire department. That had to be it.

"Why wasn't the house saved then?"

Allen shrugged. "The Dragon Slayers know how to burn a building down _properly_. That's okay, though. We know how to do that, too, and we've torched plenty of their buildings. It was just a little payback."

"Where are we going?" she asked, focusing on the road.

"Back to The Voltage Room," he answered steadily.

"Are you crazy?" Hitomi questioned. "You were the one who insisted that we get out of there A.S.A.P.!"

"I know, but I want to follow Dilandau home at the end of the night. I want to see where he goes. That might lead us to one of their houses. That was my original plan B, if you'd have bothered to listen to it, but you were too hyper to get your gun off."

"I didn't shoot anyone," Hitomi said, defending herself. "Did you hear any gun play?"

Allen shook his head, confused. "Then how did you …?"

"I'm not the kind of girl to shoot men in cold blood. I wouldn't do something like that!"

"Then how did you take those guys down?"

"I'm just a good fighter," she answered, hoping that Allen would drop it.

Luckily, he did. He concentrated on his driving until they pulled up behind the club. A lot of the action had gone down in the time they had been away. The line up was gone. Hitomi looked at the clock on the dashboard. It was almost 2:00 a.m.

Two in the morning! She was totally screwed! It was the end of the road. "Allen," she started, "I am going to be in so much trouble with my parents. I'm sorry, but can you take me home now?"

"No way!" He pulled a toque out of the glove compartment and put it on. "You said you'd help me, and right now that means sitting there quietly like a good girl. I'll talk to your dad and make him understand if he gives you any grief." He took out a pair of binoculars and looked at the back entrance through them.

"You think you'll even get a chance to talk to him? Talk about egotistical!"

"It can't be _that_ bad!"

"Oh, yes it can be. I was missing for four months. My dad thinks I'm a delinquent."

"Are you?" Allen asked, taking the binoculars away from his eyes and looking at her seriously.

"No!"

"Then you should be able to convince him that you were late for good reason," he said, returning to watching The Voltage Room.

Hitomi sat there. The last drinks call was probably not until two thirty. Great! She sat there with the vague orange light from the streetlights coming through the passenger side window. There was no way this was going to work out, and every time she turned around she was making things worse and worse with her dad.

* * *

It was ages before Dilandau left the club, and Hitomi was coming unglued with anxiety with each passing second.

Allen tried to calm her down by talking to her about what happened in the club. "You know," he said, "I really didn't expect anyone to turn into Van. I didn't believe you when you said Dilandau had been able to do it, but …"

"Now you see that I wasn't lying," Hitomi said nervously.

"I didn't think you were lying, but I'm not as surprised as you seem to be. I've seen a lot of weird things since I met up with Van, so this is nothing," he said in an extremely self-assured manner.

Hitomi didn't like the way he turned her into a child with those words. She suddenly didn't feel like talking to him anymore.

So, they sat, mostly in silence outside the club until Dilandau came out with a couple of his henchmen and got into a car. He was a little drunk, so they were driving him. After that, it seemed to take forever to drive to the place where Dilandau was getting dropped off.

It was a little house and all the lights were off. Allen wrote down the address and reassured Hitomi that he wouldn't be doing anything explosive that night. He was tired, and she was losing more and more of her mind with each minute that she wasn't home. They watched Dilandau stumble in with a couple of his friends on either side of him before they finally drove away.

When Allen stopped the truck outside Hitomi's condo complex, he asked her, "Do you want me to come in with you to explain things to your dad?"

"No," Hitomi said gloomily. She was doomed. It was after four a.m. "If you come in, he'll just kill you too, and that's no good. So, when are you going to head back to Dilandau's house?" she asked, unbuckling her seatbelt.

"I'm not sure. I have to check the place out first and make sure I know what I'm dealing with before I go in. I also have to make sure that Celena is really there. I'm not breaking in if she's not there."

Hitomi yawned and got out of the truck. At least he wasn't an idiot.

She bid him goodnight and went up the walk. She didn't get further than the lobby though, because that was where her father was waiting for her.

"Where have you been, young lady?" her father asked. His face was red and he was standing there in his pajamas and night coat.

Luckily, Hitomi had had plenty of time to think up a lie. "I'm sorry, Dad. Allen had trouble with his motorcycle, and we were stranded. We had to walk back to his place and borrow his parents' truck. That's why it took so long." She said all this humbly and quietly, like a truly repentant child.

"Then why didn't you call from his parents' home to let us know that you'd be late?"

"It was only midnight then, and I was still going to be early. I didn't know we were going to have trouble with the truck, too," she said, knowing she was getting in deeper. She didn't have as much experience lying as Van.

She thought that might pacify her father, but he was looking at her like he didn't believe her.

"You heard the engine to that clunker, right? It'll be a miracle if Allen gets home safely!" she exclaimed, trying to walk past her.

"Well, did you have a good time?" he asked her, not losing a shade of his red flush.

"No!" Hitomi answered, whining. "How could I have had a good time when two vehicles broke down in one night? It was cold out, Dad, and I think I got frostbite on my hands."

He didn't look like he believed her, until she showed them to him. They were indeed very white and patchy.

"I had to help fix the truck when it broke down, and Allen didn't have any mittens for me to wear. I didn't have any fun at all!"

Her father stood holding one of her hands. "It wasn't _that_ cold out tonight! What have you been doing?"

"Nothing," she denied instantly.

"Nothing, really? Weren't you wearing a skirt when you left with him?"

_Crap!_ Yeah, she had been wearing a skirt and she had forgotten it in the back of Allen's motorcycle. Oh, Marlene wasn't going to like that one bit. Hitomi took a deep breath and looked for the words to explain something to her dad. "Dad," she started, "Marlene dressed me, but I knew that Allen was probably coming on his motorcycle and I would have frozen to death if I hadn't taken a pair of pants along with me. I just didn't want to hurt Marlene's feelings, so I wore what she gave me out of the apartment. Do you understand? You don't even believe me, do you?"

He didn't look like he was going to buy that answer. He had been on extremely good terms with Marlene since the mess with Hitomi, and it was going to be hard to convince him of anything if she brought Marlene into it.

"You know she's not exactly fond of me right now. I wanted to do something to make friends with her again."

He changed the subject and asked, "So, this guy, Allen. Do you like him?"

"You were watching from the lobby. You must have seen that I didn't hug him or kiss him before I got out of the truck. Tonight has not been a good night, and this was our first date."

"Do you want to go out with him again?"

"I don't know. What happened tonight wasn't really his fault, but it was such a flop that I doubt he'll ask me again. He was really embarrassed. He wanted to come in to apologize to you, but I wouldn't let him."

"Really?" It didn't sound like her father believed that either. "I'm sorry, Hitomi, but it really feels like you're keeping something from me. You'd better fess up."

Hitomi took a deep breath, about to drop her bomb. She wasn't going to tell him about her detention until Sunday, but decided that now was as good a time as any. Besides, it was going to be bad whenever it was, and the sooner she told him, the less it looked like she was trying to keep secrets from him.

"I got two weeks of detention for skipping class," she admitted, and waited for him to explode. When he didn't she kept on going, "An old friend turned up at my school. He's already graduated with the rest of my class from my old school, and he asked me to go talk with him for a few minutes about Millerna. So I went."

"No good, Hitomi. You shouldn't lie. Marlene already told me that it was a huge story at school and the guy you ran off with was Allen, and I know he didn't go to your old school. After you left tonight, Marlene said she had been wondering what he looked like. She had only heard about his long hair and motorcycle. She didn't know you had detention, though."

_That little ...!_ Hitomi couldn't believe that Marlene had told on her. The little tattletale! She had no reason to tell, but she just did – FOR NO REASON! Hitomi was so angry with her little sister she could hardly breathe.

Then her father caught her attention. He was walking away from her and he was saying in the lowest voice, "I'm very disappointed in you."

The words fell on Hitomi's heart like an anvil. Tears fell down her cheeks and she swayed on her feet. This was worse than she could have possibly imagined.

* * *

Hitomi sat in detention on Monday afternoon. She didn't have any homework to do, and after spending a very frosty weekend with her family, she was starting to think of things in a more realistic way. She had bus fare in her pocket that her father had given her, since he wouldn't be picking her up after her detention. She twirled a pen between her fingers and for the first time in her life considered moving out on her own. Van had left her plenty of money. When she saw the balance of his account, she almost choked. After the insurance money came in and the money from the sale of the land, there was just over two hundred thousand dollars. She didn't think it was a good idea to buy another house without Van's permission, but she thought she could at least rent an apartment by herself until he came back if living with her family became unbearable, and it was fast becoming so.

Marlene had been furious that Hitomi had left the skirt behind, and Hitomi had been livid with Marlene for telling their parents about Allen. Her father had not spoken to her at all, except for the moment he spoke to her and gave her bus fare. The silence he treated her with was painful. And her mother was obviously torn as to how she ought to behave.

Hitomi plopped her head on her desk and tried to concentrate on how to fix her problems, but it was difficult since everyone else who was in detention was staring at her like she was their god. Niether Amano or Yukari had detention, so she was stuck with all these people – none of whom were her friends. She either wanted to tear her shirt sleeve off so they could all get the good hard look at her tattoo they had been craving, or else turn around and tell them off.

In the end, she did neither, but was called in to have a word with the principal. His name was Principal Voris, and he was as bald as the picture of Lord Grava Asturia, but Hitomi tried to put it out of her mind as he made her an offer. He had heard about the school shooting she had been involved in and was convinced that she wasn't really a bad girl, but a girl in serious need of help. He said that he'd cut her detention in half if she would be willing to meet with the school counselor.

Getting her detention cut in half sounded like a great idea, so she agreed. Hitomi had heard something about the guidance counselor from Yukari about how the faculty had recently asked him to cut his hair, and how he had. He wasn't popular with the teachers, and was even less popular with the parents, but the students liked him a great deal. He seemed to be able to get through to some of the rougher boys (not that Lord Grava Asturia High really had rough boys). There was a girl who faked being a schizophrenic in order to spend time with him in his office. She was _that _far gone on him. Hitomi didn't care about any of that. She knew he'd probably ask her all kinds of questions, but she decided to put up with it in order to get along better with her father. He might even be happy to hear that she'd decided to cooperate with a counselor; a sign that she wasn't a complete delinquent. And getting her detention cut back was the cherry on top – if not the ice cream, too.

The principal gave Hitomi his office number and told her that he was staying after school hours in order to talk to her.

Hitomi walked down the hall slowly to find his office. The principal said she'd only have to meet with him for as long as she was in detention for that day, and then she could go home. He also mentioned something about the two of them working out a time for them to meet on a regular basis.

"Fine," Hitomi thought as she walked.

Then she found it. The letters said – Mr. F. Raevendorf. This was the place.

Hitomi knocked on the door politely, and opened the door once she heard the man call for her to enter.

"You must be Hitomi," he said, rising from behind his desk and shaking her hand.

Hitomi looked at him. She had never seen him on campus before. He seemed to be a relatively young man, probably not even thirty-five. Hitomi didn't know what he looked like before, but now his hair was cut quite respectably, and he was wearing a white collared business shirt with no suit coat.

"Hi," Hitomi said, taking the chair he offered her.

He looked at her with clear brown eyes. "Do you want to start, or should I?" he offered.

Hitomi hesitated. "I've never seen a counselor before. Don't you normally give kids advice on what college they want to attend?" Hitomi asked, looking around the room for some diploma or something to prove he was legitimate. She didn't see anything. His office wasn't really decorated, except for a selection of framed black and white prints.

"Sometimes," he agreed. "But I'm also a certified psychologist, so we can talk about anything."

"Anything?" Hitomi repeated, regarding him skeptically. He'd be lucky if he got her to talk at all.

"Of course. I understand that you received detention for skipping gym class?" he said.

"Not everyone who skips class is asked to have a meeting with you?" Her guard was coming up. She didn't like the warm look in his eyes, or his invitation to trust him. Both of them put her on edge.

"No," he agreed. "But I understand you should have graduated last year, but failed to because …"

"You seem to 'understand' a lot about me," she said rebelliously, not wanting him to comment on Millerna. To have a person so obviously ignorant of the truth comment on the situation seemed like a profanity, and Hitomi wouldn't have it.

"I see," he said, seeming to appreciate her attitude. He had a notebook open on his desk, which he promptly closed. He hadn't been poised to write anything, but with the book closed he looked like he wasn't going to force her to talk, but he was definitely going to encourage it. "What would you like to talk about? As I said, we can talk about anything."

"You're here to help me?"

He nodded. "I hear you joined the track team," he commented, seeming comfortable enough to change the subject.

"It was stupid," Hitomi admitted. "I shouldn't have bothered. I'll be out of here at the end of the term, anyway. I probably won't even be able to compete. And now I'm in detention, so I'll miss practice."

"I could make arrangements for you to …"

"Like I said," Hitomi interrupted. "It was stupid. I won't get to compete, because all the meets are in the spring semester. So, there's no need for you to go out of your way for me."

"But I want to help you," he insisted.

As he leaned forward, the afternoon sun shone on his hair. He had product in his hair, and Hitomi could smell it. She couldn't decide if it smelt good or not, but either way, he didn't smell like an adult. He smelled like a teenager, and these kids went by sense instead of smarts. Maybe that was why the kids trusted him, but it didn't win any points with Hitomi.

"If you're going to analyze me," she challenged, "then you'd better just start asking me questions, but I'll warn you right now that I'm not talking about what happened last spring," Hitomi said, referring to the school shooting.

"Fine," he said, opening his notebook again. "Okay, I thought we could start by talking about your tattoo. There must be a story behind it."

"You knew about it? Well, I guess that's no surprise," Hitomi yawned.

"May I see it?"

_Dang it! Everyone had seen it! _ He might as well see it, too. She unbuttoned her cuff and pulled her sleeve up. She saw now what Allen meant when he questioned her as to whether or not Van had authorized it. If she had spoken to Van before getting the stupid thing, he would have instructed her to get it somewhere more personal instead of where she was constantly a walking billboard, advertising a rebellion that she didn't exactly foster.

"Wow! That's really well done! Where did you get it?" Mr. Raevendorf seemed interested, like he wasn't going to criticize her for her choice, but instead attack the problem from an open-minded perspective.

Hitomi bit her lip and shrugged in response. She was getting more uncomfortable by the second. He hadn't done anything specific to set her off, but there was definitely something about him - something that she didn't feel like she could trust.

"There has to be a story behind that!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"No story," Hitomi said stiffly, covering her arm back up. "I just liked the picture."

His expression said that he didn't believe her.

"Look, Mr. Raevendorf, I … am not interested in attending college," Hitomi stuttered.

He looked puzzled. "I wasn't thinking of talking to you about your career plans, Hitomi. You know as well as I do that that's not the purpose of this session."

"But I'm not comfortable …" she trailed off, feeling exactly like a rat in an aquarium.

"Is it the room? I know it isn't ideal, but if it's that I might be able to find a different venue for our next session."

"You're acting like this is going to be a regular thing."

"I thought that's what you agreed to when you came."

Hitomi thought for a second. She _couldn't _talk. Van had spent weeks teaching her not to talk, and talking to his man about anything that happened to her seemed too difficult to accept. "If that's the agreement," she said quietly, "than I'd rather go to detention." She picked up her bag and moved to the door.

He got up and came around his desk, towards her. "What's making you uncomfortable? Of course, the things you've been though are terrible, but I want to help you learn to deal with them. I don't know your whole story and I don't want to judge you. Please give me a chance and confide in me a little."

Hitomi's eyes didn't give him an inch.

"Besides, we don't have to talk about it right away. I don't want to push you, and we can take things slowly."

"I don't want to take things slowly. I just don't want to talk about it."

"Then why did you make that deal with Mr. Voris?"

Hitomi caved. His voice sounded like something … she couldn't say what it was, and she decided to answer him truthfully. Maybe it was the pure logic of the question. "I wanted to get out of detention. Don't get me wrong. I really don't care about the time that I'd spend there, but my father isn't pleased that I broke the school rules, and I …"

"Wanted to do something to help make things up with him?" Mr. Raevendorf finished for her.

Hitomi wasn't impressed, but she managed to say weakly, "Yeah."

"What if I got you off?"

"I don't want you to do favours for me. I don't want to owe you, or anybody else, anything. I'm leaving," she said, turning the door handle.

"Well," he said, stretching his arm out and holding the door shut.

Did most teachers prevent their students from leaving a room? Hitomi sucked in her breath. She wasn't afraid, because she knew she could take care of herself, but she was definitely creeped out.

"Just remember," he said, peering into her eyes quite intimately, as though he knew something about her that she did not. "Just remember that I'm here if you want to talk. My door is always open."

Then he moved away from the door and let Hitomi pass through.

She was ruffled, but she managed to walk back to the detention room with a little poise.

Who was he?

* * *

Author's Notes: I know. Another chapter without Van. I'm starting to get frustrated too, but I'm gonna update within a couple of days in order to help soothe the pain. Special thanks to Kaytala for betaing, and everyone who reviews and visits the forum and makes comments. The forum for this chapter is already up. Hope you guys are enjoying this story. Cheers!  



	15. The Damage a Pin Can Do

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. Three, two, one ... let's ride.

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**Chapter Fourteen**

**The Damage a Pin Can Do**

The next day, Hitomi was standing at her locker after the last bell. She was putting her books away and taking out her mp3 player and pencil crayons. Of course, she had detention again and she had to have something to do.

She was thinking about how boring it was going to be when Yukari pounced on her. "Got detention again?" the girl asked pleasantly.

"Yeah," Hitomi mumbled.

"It's too bad you'll miss practice. We'll really miss you."

"Hey Yukari, is there any way that I could get a key to the weight room? I have a spare I could work out during. I know it's not the same as training with the team, but that way I wouldn't fall that far behind."

"I can loan you my key," Yukari volunteered, "but you'd have to give it back to me after you finished using it, and there couldn't be a class in there while you were training. Hey, when is your spare?"

"Third period."

Yukari thought for a moment before she answered, "That should be all right. Do you want to start tomorrow?"

"Please."

Yukari waved to her and left her standing in the hallway. Hitomi waved back and pretended to smile.

She would have liked to smile naturally at Yukari, but she had no intention of training with the team from now on. She'd thought about what she had said to Mr. Raevendorf and she was right – joining the track team had been stupid. She should have joined the boxing club, except that the school didn't have one. In any case, there was a punching bag in the weight room, and she planned to make good use of it. She wasn't really thinking that she'd have to fight many more Dragon Slayers, but she needed to work off some of her tension. She was so tense!

The halls of the school were emptying now and she saw a familiar face heading towards her. It was Dryden.

"Yo, Kanzaki," he said pleasantly.

"I can't come over to your house today," Hitomi said. She had never yet accepted Dryden's invitation but today she had an excuse, and the sooner she could dispose of him, the better. "I have detention."

"What a coincidence!" he exclaimed, "So do I."

Hitomi shut her locker with a bang. "Really? What did you do?"

"Nothing as radical as you. I was late for the same class three days in a row and got detention this afternoon."

"Only one day?"

"Only one day. Let me walk with you. And stop being so stuck up!" he said roguishly.

Hitomi regarded him with suspicion. There had to a reason he wanted to be friends with her, but Hitomi couldn't figure out what it was.

* * *

There weren't any other girls besides Hitomi in detention that day, so she got all of Dryden's attention. They were not allowed to talk, but he passed her notes that said things like "If you were a goddess, what would you be a goddess of?" Hitomi didn't know how to answer these questions and ended up writing flippant remarks back to him that were neither here nor there. He almost seemed disappointed by her answers and just kept on asking her questions. What was her favourite colour? Did she believe in fortune telling? What was her sign? What was her birthday? Did she believe that beauty and love were the same thing?

He wrote her a little quiz, asking her about her love life. How old was she when she had her first kiss? Had a guy ever told her that he loved her? The last question on the test was: have you ever cheated on a guy?

Hitomi felt sick and stuffed the paper into her bag. _With Dilandau no less!_ She was flushed and unhappy. She still couldn't forgive herself for being so stupid. How could she have thought he was Van? It was just a trick, but a trick that Hitomi didn't know how to explain.

Dryden pouted and asked her to give it to him since she'd obviously filled it out. She wouldn't though, and on their way out, he tried to snatch it out of her bag.

"What are you, twelve?" she asked, questioning the maturity of his chasing her around the hallway after detention was over. "You're going to get detention again for goofing off in the halls."

"Classes are over," he said, making another grab for her bag. "I wanna see your answers. Besides, the teachers at this school are all about as professional as gold fish. Like they really care what you or I do as long as it doesn't reflect badly on their precious school's image. They're a load of brainless bureaucrats that couldn't do the right thing unless it was in their handbook, and even then, they'd have to be told to do it!"

Dryden wasn't looking behind him. If he had been there was no way that he would have said such a loaded statement, because standing behind him was Principal Voris. Apparently, he hadn't gone home yet, and managed to make it just in time to hear Dryden mouth off.

Dryden was given three days of detention, as if to prove his point. So, Hitomi would finish her first week with Dryden sitting beside her. "Oh goodie!" she thought, with absolutely no enthusiasm.

On the way out, he asked her if he could drive her home, but she turned him down, thinking of how little she'd like to be in such an enclosed space with him. He still seemed like the ultimate man-whore.

"Sorry, I've had enough man trouble," she said, heading towards the bus stop.

"Is that why you wouldn't let me see your answers," he called, too far away from her now to make a final snatch at her bag.

She shrugged.

"See you in detention tomorrow! It's a date, okay?"

"No, it's not!" she yelled back to him. She still counted herself lucky that he hadn't grabbed her butt.

* * *

When Hitomi finally made it back to the apartment, she saw Allen's motorcycle parked across the street. He was nowhere to be seen, but she thought she ought to get Marlene's skirt back. He probably didn't even know he had it. She reached into the back flap, but it wasn't there. There wasn't anything! Had it been stolen? Did Allen never lock his stuff up properly?

Hitomi slowly went up to the condo. She hadn't been feeling good lately. She felt sick to her stomach. Going home was now about as comfortable as pulling teeth or purposefully putting your head in a vice grip. Her family life had never been this strained before. They had always lived relatively together happily. Sure, there had been problems, but she had never been the centre of discontent before. And Allen was in the house now? Hopefully, he'd left off the stud collar. Hopefully …

She unlocked the door and announced her arrival, "I'm here!"

Hitomi walked into the living room to see Allen and Marlene sitting on the couch. Her skirt was on her lap and there was rosy blush on her cheeks. They were leaning towards each other with their eyes and lips just inches apart. They were whispering and he was touching the side of her face with his fingertips. Perhaps they weren't exactly doing anything, but there was something deeply personal about them. Maybe, it was their proximity?

Hitomi's first reaction was one of gladness that her sister had gotten her bloody skirt back. Now Marlene would stop complaining. Her second reaction wasn't nearly as pleasant.

"Oh, hello Allen," she said, interrupting their flirting. "Did you come to see me?"

"Yeah," he said, finally looking away from Marlene.

"Do you want to talk to me on the balcony?" she asked, indicating for him to follow her.

It wasn't a nice day as it was now October, and the cold weather was starting to come, but Hitomi didn't want to talk to Allen with Marlene. It wasn't just because of what their conversation might contain, but she didn't want Allen and Marlene to get any closer. Who knew how long they'd been sitting like that? And where was her father? Shouldn't he have snatched Marlene's skirt out of Allen's hand and sent him packing without even letting him into the apartment?

Marlene was at a bad age. Hitomi remembered what she was like when she was fifteen years old. She had fallen in love with Dilandau – which was such a major mistake that she'd be paying for it for the rest of her life because of Millerna's death. It didn't matter how Hitomi looked at it – Allen was NO better. His association with Marlene could easily turn out to be as damaging as Hitomi's prior relationship with Dilandau. Were both she and Marlene going to be victims of poor judgment? She'd have to talk to Allen about it.

Even though the resemblance between Allen and Marlene and herself and Van was clear, Hitomi wouldn't even let herself compare the two. There was no one for her but Van because of their abilities. It didn't matter if they came together now or in a year, or five years – there would never be anyone for her but Van. Hitomi thought herself so much better equipped to make the life altering choice of choosing of mate at age eighteen rather than age fifteen. Besides, it wasn't like Van was going to leave her in the dust – they were married! Hitomi didn't let herself remember that that was exactly what Van had done by leaving her to go to The Voltage Room by himself.

Allen followed Hitomi onto the balcony and was smart enough to shut the door firmly behind him before Marlene could follow. Allen never put pleasure before work. At least that was one good thing about him.

"Was Celena there?" Hitomi asked after the preliminary 'how are you's' had been exchanged.

"No!" he said, saying the word as though it were a curse. "All four of us took turns watching – Eries, Gaddes, Merle and me. The Dragon Slayers moved all the furniture out this morning and the house is now for sale."

"What?"

"I can't make sense of it, either," he said, turning his head to look at the view.

"Did they know we were following them on Friday night and purposefully drive to the wrong house?"

"I don't know … damn it! Probably … I don't know," he groaned.

"Did you have a plan C?" Hitomi asked hopefully.

He smirked. "We can try following him again."

"Yeah, Allen, I was going to tell you. I'm not coming on that little adventure. Besides, I don't see how I could be helpful from this point forward. I think our last little field trip showed that I can't do anything with Dilandau. So, how about you just leave me alone from now on, Allen?"

He didn't answer, but he didn't move to leave either.

"Oh and hey, didn't I tell you not to flirt with my sister?" she snapped.

Allen looked thrown by Hitomi's accusation. "I wasn't flirting with her!"

"Yeah, you were," Hitomi sighed. "She is fifteen years old. You are nine years older than she is, and didn't you say something about not digging high school girls?"

"It's not like that with Marlene!"

"Regardless," Hitomi said. "Van told me I was too young for him and I'm less than five years younger than he is. You encouraged him along those lines, didn't you? He asked you if it was too much of a gap and you told him that you thought it was. Isn't that right? And now you're shamelessly following along a path you wouldn't allow your friend on. I don't care if it's a game to you. You could really hurt Marlene by your casual attention. I'm asking you Allen, please don't pursue this. Ignore her."

"No," Allen said quietly. "He never talked to me about you."

"What?"

"Van never talked to me about you. He never said if he was interested or no. He would never talk to me about something like that. It would be very … unlike him."

Hitomi sighed. "Okay, I believe you, but you must have told him your feelings about high school girls at some point."

"Maybe I did do that," Allen conceded. He didn't look like he was having a much better time than Hitomi. Having lost his clue to finding his sister must have really hurt him, but obviously it didn't hurt him so much as to prevent him from being as bad as Dryden.

"Listen, she has a boyfriend …"

Allen suddenly looked even more uncomfortable. "Not anymore. She just told me that they broke up."

"Did _she_ break up with _him_?" Hitomi asked dangerously.

"I think so," Allen answered slowly.

"That's great, Allen. That's just great. I told you your attention would screw her up. She's really young and not very experienced. What were you hoping? Please tell me you weren't thinking of recruiting her to the Abaharaki?"

Allen turned away and wouldn't meet Hitomi's eyes.

"_That_ is what you were thinking!" Hitomi gaped in horror. "Listen to me Allen," she said strongly, but not so strongly that she thought someone might hear her. "If you think talking to me would get you into trouble with Van – I can promise you this – getting Marlene involved with the Abaharaki would get you into trouble with both Van and I, which is a whole different level …"

"Of what?" he questioned, turning to look at her. "I'm not about to take orders from you, Hitomi. You don't speak for Van, and even so, he's not my bloody boss!"

Hitomi took a deep breath, to force herself to calm down. Allen was really irritating her. "We've already established that I can't be helpful to you anymore. I think you should just go."

Allen turned, seeming unwilling to be affected by her disapproval. "But you'll tell me if you get a lead on Celena or Van, won't you?"

"Yes," she said, knowing she would, regardless of how unreasonable he was being just now.

Then he said, "She would have met someone like me, eventually."

"Yeah, when she was going to college and ready for it. Don't argue with me Allen. Keep away from her and don't recruit kids into the Abaharaki!"

Allen didn't say anything, but clenched his jaw and went out.

_Man alive!_ Hitomi didn't like fighting with him. When they were at The Voltage Room together, he had been a real sport. It seemed unforgivable now for her to be so hard on him, but what about Marlene? She wasn't ready for this, and Allen wasn't a good choice, anyway. He'd just love her and leave her alone to lick her wounds like he had with every other girl who had come into his life. He would put her in danger, too, if he wanted her to join the Abaharaki – the monster!

Hitomi wished she could leave Marlene with Eries for a week. Eries would set her straight!

* * *

Hitomi didn't expect Marlene to say anything to her about Allen's visit, so when they were lying down to go to bed she was surprised when Marlene started talking to her.

"Why did you send Allen away when he came today? He could be my friend, too," Marlene asked, not sounding snotty, but sounding like she wanted a logical reason.

"Why are you asking this all of a sudden?" Hitomi said. She wanted Marlene to forget Allen existed. Nine years older! And Van thought he was a cradle robber!

Marlene gulped, like she was about to say something that she found unpalatable, but she continued, "I was wondering if you were mad at me?"

"Is there a reason I should be mad at you?" Hitomi asked, she shut off the light and waited for her sister's answer in the dark.

"I didn't want to steal your boyfriend or anything. He's just so …" She trailed off and didn't finish.

Hitomi grasped at the opportunity to talk seriously with her sister. "Marlene," she said sincerely. "I'm not interested in Allen, but he's interested in everyone. He's sort of my friend, so I don't like to say mean things about him, but he's not exactly a faithful guy. If you think he thought you were special, you're probably right. He does think you're special, but he thinks every girl he meets is special."

"You don't want me to become involved with him, but Hitomi … I really, really like him," Marlene confided in a soft voice.

Hitomi couldn't see her face, but for her sister to be talking to her like this, then it must be serious to her. The girl had even broken up with her boyfriend for pity sake! Hitomi didn't know what to say. Finally, she whispered, "What?"

"When I saw him come in the door, it was like … a miracle. I think I'm in love!"

"In love," Hitomi repeated deftly. Marlene couldn't be in love with Allen! "You don't even know him," Hitomi said out loud.

"I know it's crazy, but I …"

"He's twenty-four!" Hitomi pronounced. She doubted Marlene knew even that much about him.

"He is?" she gasped.

"He didn't tell you, did he?"

"No," she said quietly.

"Look Marlene, I'm actually not trying to kill your dreams, or tell you who to date. I'm telling you who _not _to date. I think you should think twice about Allen before you decide that he's the man of your dreams. He's older, experienced, and has probably been around the block a time or two. I don't know about you, but lecherous guys don't turn me on."

"I could hang out with him …" Marlene started to say.

Hitomi reached over and flipped on her bedside lamp. "What did you just say? You're underage!"

"But if you're really in love that sort of thing shouldn't matter, right?" Marlene said, looking very young and vulnerable with her hair braided in two long blonde braids.

"You have only seen him twice, right? How can you call that love?"

"Hitomi, are you trying to punish me for telling Mom and Dad about you skipping gym class to run off with him? Is that why you're saying all this? Look, I'm sorry, I had no idea it would make such a difference to dad."

"That is NOT why I'm saying this. Allen is a MAN! You are … not experienced enough to date him!" Hitomi exclaimed.

"Well, that's not your decision, is it? Turn off the light, will you? I want to go to sleep!" Marlene said waspishly, finally having reached her limit. She turned on her side and snuggled her pillow.

Hitomi huffed. Marlene was so obstinate, yet she hadn't exactly been rude. She was going to make Hitomi stay out of her decision making process. Hitomi switched off the light. _Crap!_

_

* * *

_

Hitomi was sitting in detention the following Monday. Dryden had finished his detention the week before and hadn't done anything rebellious enough to earn him an extra week, day, or hour of detention. Hitomi laid her head flat on her cold desktop and wished faintly that he was back in detention. At least he had kept her entertained.

She was still the only girl there and was having zero fun. Hitomi had taken all the same classes the semester before, so she knew the material and never had any homework. Normally, she listened to mp3s while she sat out the clock, but she hadn't had a chance to change the songs on it, and she couldn't bear to listen to the same tracks again so, she left her earphones off. She was on edge, frustrated, desperate, and basically feeling like kicking the crap out of someone, but had to sit quietly. So, she sat quietly.

Actually, she was drumming her fingers on her desk when suddenly a boy two chairs over flicked a pin at her. It pricked her on her right ear. It didn't hurt much, but when Hitomi bent down to pick it up, she saw that it wasn't a sewing pin, or a pin used to pin papers to a bulletin board – this was different! It was a pin probably stolen from the biology room. Hitomi wasn't taking biology but she knew it was the tool used for pinning dead frogs and pigs for dissection. It was long and very sharp.

"You little brat!" she screamed, holding onto her injured ear and looking at the boy with her eyebrows drawn together. "How dare you! This could have really hurt me! You could have hit me in the eye!"

"What happened?" the female teacher asked, rushing to Hitomi's aid.

"That kid … flicked this at me!" Hitomi exclaimed, showing the pin to the teacher.

The woman looked at Hitomi and the boy, who sat there looking like he was pleased he was able to piss Hitomi off and especially to get a reaction out of her. "You NEED a bandage," the teacher insisted, looking at Hitomi meaningfully. "The nurse is gone for the day. Why don't you go to Mr. Raevendorf's office, and he'll give you a bandage?"

Hitomi didn't shout that she didn't want to go to Mr. Raevendorf's office, even though she wanted to. She was still feeling blessed that she didn't have to meet with him after all. However, she knew that the teacher didn't know how distressing she found his company. The woman was just trying to nip a potentially explosive situation in the butt. Hitomi had not gotten along or fit in with the delinquents at the school, and she would gladly have kicked the crap out of the little puke, in her mood. It would be better if they walked out different exits at the end of the day.

"Is _he_ going to be punished?" she asked, pointing at the stupid kid.

"Yes," the teacher said, nodding. "You should get going."

There wasn't much blood, but to prevent there from being more (more blood would have come from the kid's nose if Hitomi had had her way), Hitomi nodded and picked up her books. Her mouth was dry and she was so angry her eyes were bugging out of her head.

She stomped her feet down the hall like she was an army of elephants on her way to Mr. Raevendorf's office. This was a right pissy situation, but Hitomi would put up with it. She'd get her friggin' band-aid and then head straight for the door and go straight home. Detention was almost over, anyway.

As she got closer, his door was ajar and Hitomi thought she heard him speaking on the phone. She stopped stomping and approached much quieter. Then she heard what sounded like the end of a phone conversation.

Mr. Raevendorf was saying, and he wasn't bothering to keep his voice down, "Van did what? That bloody idiot! Fine, I'll be there as soon as I can." Then he clicked his flip phone shut quite noisily and was putting on his jacket.

Hitomi was thinking quickly. He'd said 'Van', hadn't he? Was Van a common name? She had never known anyone else other than _her_ Van called that! But Hitomi had to think quickly as he was coming out of his office.

"Hi Mr. Raevendorf," she heard herself saying pleasantly. "Are you on your way home? I was just coming to see you."

"Oh, have you changed your mind about our sessions?" he asked, regaining his composure at lightning speed, if he had been agitated by the news he'd just received.

She showed him her ear and explained that the teacher on detention duty had sent her to him for a bandage.

He took a look at her wound and invited her back into his office. He opened a first aid kit on his desk and said, "I'm surprised that you don't get along with the other students. They seem to like you."

"Do you think so?" Hitomi said, trying not to allow herself to become volatile. Even though that was how she had been feeling, she had to swallow it. She really wanted to find out what happened to Van and the way she saw it, was that there was no way, except to pick F. Raevendorf's brain. She had to find a way to steer their conversation back towards their sessions. If she agreed to meet with him, she'd be able to talk to him, too, and maybe get some information? "I thought I was intimidating them, because of …" Hitomi purposefully hesitated, and hoped that Mr. Raevendorf would pick up on it and ask her what she was about to say.

He wasn't a bad looking guy and the afternoon sun through his window was killer. He tore a band-aid off the sheet and unwrapped it. "May I?" he asked, looking for her permission before putting it on for her.

She nodded.

"Hitomi, I have to tell you something. I think your experience would probably be useful to other students who are frustrated and miserable about their school life, if you weren't afraid to share it. I know you don't want to talk about it, but you might be able to convince someone who feels like doing something violent to think first," he said, actually blowing in her ear before he touched her to place the adhesive strip to her skin. It might have been accidental, but Hitomi got goose bumps down her neck.

"I couldn't!"

"Well, not to an audience of people. Not at first, anyway. First, you'd need to work up the courage to tell just one person."

"Like you?" she asked, trying to sound a little like the same person who'd been in his office the previous Monday – like herself. He wouldn't buy her act if it was all sweet.

"Yeah, like me," he said, looking at her warmly. "But you said you weren't interested."

She bit her lip and looked at the floor.

He seemed to catch her hesitation and said, "I'd gladly pick up with you any time you wanted. Just say the word. Now if you'll excuse me, something just came up and I need to be on my way."

Mr. Raevendorf was standing at the door now. He was holding it open for Hitomi, but she was still leaning against his desk – appearing to be thinking. He raised his eyebrows as if to ask her what she had decided.

"What word would I need to say?" she asked slowly – very slowly, and very distinctly. She didn't know why, but for some reason she wanted to hold F. Raevendorf back for as long as possible.

"What you just said will work fine. We'll start tomorrow, okay?"

Then he did something that was very unprofessional, and it took Hitomi by surprise. He put his hand on her shoulder and led her out of the room. Hitomi didn't think that he should have touched her, but he led her out of the room and locked the door to his office before she had time to think of something else to say that would keep him with her another second. She was new to this.

"Considering what happened, you shouldn't go back to detention. Just go home and I'll see you tomorrow. I'm very interested in learning all about you," he said, waving to her and heading towards the parking lot.

Hitomi watched him go.

He had said 'Van', but maybe it was a misunderstanding … maybe.

* * *

When Hitomi got home, she telephoned Allen to tell him what she'd heard, and ask his opinion on the situation.

"It's probably nothing," he said drowsily, like he had just woken up.

"It's five o'clock in the afternoon. Don't tell me you just got up?"

"So? What if I did? Look, call me when you've got a real clue, instead of when some weirdo at your school who might have said his name."

He was about to hang up but Hitomi beat him to it. Why was he being such a jackass, anyway?

Hitomi marched to her room and slammed the door. Marlene wasn't there so Hitomi was alone to think. So, she wasn't going to get any helpful hints from Allen. She'd have to think up a strategy for learning what Mr. Raevendorf was talking about. Yeah, Allen was right. He might have been talking about _anything_, but Hitomi had to make sure.

First, she decided that she'd get him to tell her something of his past. Hitomi believed that anyone could be a Dragon Slayer, since that misfortune with the security guard at the hospital. She might be able to ascertain that much on her own - hopefully.

Except that Mr. Raevendorf wasn't at school the next day. The teacher supervising detention told Hitomi that he had phoned the school with a message that he'd had an emergency and wouldn't be at school for a few days, and that he was deeply sorry that he hadn't been able to make it for his session with Hitomi. He hoped she'd forgive him and that they could meet together sometime in the middle of the next week. He hoped he'd be back sooner than that, but was worried that it might not be possible.

Hitomi took this news in stride and tried her best to be patient and wait for him to come back, but by the weekend, she decided that waiting for him to come back was stupid. She should be doing something productive, but what?

She didn't come up with a solution until Friday when she was passing his office in the hall. She wished she could go snoop around when the thought hit her. Why the heck shouldn't she?

* * *

Author's Notes: Okay, I'm obviously excited to be getting on with the story. I'll be updating in three or four days again - unless something wild happens in my real life - which wouldn't be impossible considering how things have been going lately. But, if I can sit at my desk for ten minutes, then you'll be getting that update. 

Thanks to Kaytala for beta reading and everyone who reviews and visits my forum (accessible through my profile). There were some really good reviews last time! Some of them really thrilled me and made me pink with happiness. Even if you're just writing to say you read the chapter - that's lots - and I'll remember you in my will ! No really, THANK YOU to everyone who reviews. YOU ROCK! It only takes a second and it makes a really big difference to me. See you in a couple days!


	16. Quote the Raven

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, or anything by Edger Allen Poe. Cheers!

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen**

**Quote the Raven**

Hitomi woke up early Monday morning. She had spent the whole weekend planning how she was going to break into Mr. Raevendorf's office, and finally she thought she'd come up with a method that would work. She had gone to visit Yukari Sunday night to borrow her keys to the school. She had a fantastic key ring because she was the manager of the track team. Hitomi could not believe her luck in having a friend like Yukari. She told her that she wanted to go exercise first thing in the morning and she doubted the school would be open at five a.m. Yukari was a little surprised at the time.

"Wow," she said, as she handed the keys over. "You sure are hardcore! I can't wait to time you when you can join us again for practice."

Hitomi hugged her. "It's sure good to have a friend like you!"

Hitomi didn't arrive at the school at five a.m., but instead at six-thirty. She wanted someone to be in the office, and she had absolutely no intention of working out. She poked her head into the office and saw the sleepy secretary.

"Good morning," Hitomi said, trying her best to look innocent.

"Can I help you?" the woman asked. Her morning coffee had obviously not kicked in yet.

"Hi, yeah. Mr. Raevendorf wanted me to clean the baseboards in his office before he came back, but he accidentally gave me the wrong keys," Hitomi explained, lying her head off and showing her Yukari's keys as proof that Mr. Raevendorf really had lent her keys to his office. She didn't think the secretary would know the difference. "And I've got to get it finished before he comes back."

"You've waited a little long, haven't you? He's supposed to be back tomorrow," she said, rummaging around through the key lockbox. "Bring them back to me before class or you'll be in even more trouble."

"Thanks! You're a life saver," Hitomi said to the secretary and headed for the door with the keys in hand. _Too easy!_

Mr. Raevendorf's office faced west, so there was no natural light coming from the window or through the glass the door was mostly made of. Hitomi slid her key into the keyhole and opened the door as quietly as she could. She didn't know what she'd be able to find in his office, but she never could have expected what she saw when she had only opened the door a crack.

Mr. Raevendorf was standing at the window with his back to the door. He had his arm propped up on the windowsill and he was drinking a cup of coffee. It was unusual that he was in his office at all, but what was even more unusual was that he was naked from the waist up. With his back facing her, Hitomi saw that he had a tattoo. It was a deep black with intricate Celtic tracing that ran from his waist to his shirt line by his neck to his elbows. Hitomi had only ever seen a tattoo like that in a movie. It was a mobster tattoo, all the way. And the picture was of a crow. It could only be one person – Folken.

Hitomi felt like an idiot as she made her body exhale. The age was right. He looked about ten years older than Van. His name was F. Raevendorf. Of course, the F. stood for Folken and the Raevendorf was just a play off the word 'raven'. Why had she not noticed it sooner? She _was_ an idiot.

However, she took courage. If he was Folken, then he could really give her some answers about where Van was. It would have been Van that he was talking about the week before. It had to be.

But, all of these facts still didn't explain one thing. One very important question: what was he doing at her school?

He still hadn't noticed her at the door, and Hitomi forced herself to be fearless as she swung the door open and closed it behind her noisily. His head shot up and he saw her.

"So, the F. stands for Folken?" she asked, dropping the office keys on his desk loudly.

He set his coffee cup down on his filing cabinet and reached for his shirt. "Well, Hitomi, I didn't know you were so anxious to meet with me."

Hitomi plopped herself down in one of the chairs available for students, guessing that he would be the last person to cause a ruckus at school. "What are you doing here, and where's Van?"

Folken put his shirt on and stood there, doing up the buttons. Yeah, he was Van's brother. They had the same physique.

"When did you know?" he asked.

"Know what?"

"Who I am?" he did up the cuffs on his shirt, but Hitomi noticed he'd missed a couple buttons at his collarbone.

"Just now, but I knew something was wrong with you, so I came to ransack your office."

"Too bad," he said, "that you didn't get the chance."

Hitomi shrugged. "I don't really care about that now that I know who you are. You'd better answer my questions. What are you doing here, and where is Van?"

"I'm here … to meet you," he said, looking at her with eyes that now looked oddly like Van's – dark brown and intense. Hitomi told herself it was because they were related. "It's very exciting to meet the new girl – the girl with the moon as her symbol."

"Ah," Hitomi said and waited for him to continue.

"And as for Van, I thought Dilandau explained it to you twice already."

"It doesn't make sense that 'The Dragon' would join the Dragon Slayers," she said slyly, trying to be cool, but wanting to ring his neck. She was already draping an arm over the back of her chair and feeling her heart in case things got rough. "Try again."

He sat down on the front of his desk, near her and tucked his shirt into his pants. "Of course, he didn't join the Dragon Slayers. The Dragon Slayers were just a tool I used to get Van's attention. He's difficult. I can hardly get him in the same room with me, even when I ask nicely."

"Taking six people hostage is your idea of 'asking nicely'?" Hitomi interrupted, thinking of Allen and the others.

He looked amused by what she said and smiled mildly. "If you'd like I could take you to his office. He works for the Zaibach group now, and consequently, for me. I'm sure he'd like to see you, since he worked so hard for your friendship and then turned you away for no good reason. He should have brought you to The Voltage Room that day if you were important to him."

Hitomi gaped, but managed to choke, "Dilandau said one-on-one. That was the condition."

"Ah, but Van would have known that I would have wanted to meet you. Look at the lengths I've gone to meet you with this charade. You're one of us, so of course you're above all that; the Abaharaki, the Dragon Slayers – they mean nothing to your power – our power."

"Another kind of club?" she questioned sarcastically. She was reluctant to take his offer to go see Van. It had to be a trap, and she had met too many false Van's to simply believe what he said. But what could Folken possibly want with her? "What do you want with me?"

Folken looked at the door and then at her. "This isn't a good place to talk. How about if I take you out for breakfast … in my car?"

Hitomi's warning bells were going off like mad, but there was no pain at her chest. So, she decided to take a chance. She got up and looked at him levelly. "We're not fighting today!" she said seriously. "Just talking."

"We aren't going to ever fight, Hitomi. Not when we have so much to gain from our relationship. We're going to get along perfectly," he said leading her out of the room with his hand on the small of her back.

"Please don't touch me," she bit as she moved past him to pick up the keys to his office. "I'm returning these to the office," she said, walking ahead of him. "I'll meet you at the parking lot."

Even though Hitomi said she'd meet him and went on to explain that she didn't want him to come to the office with her, he went with her all the same. He didn't trust her to keep her word, and she didn't blame him. She had no plans to run away, but she felt uncomfortable as they walked. He seemed to keep his eyes on her very firmly.

"Do you have to keep staring at me like that?" she snapped at him, her voice a harsh whisper.

"Maybe I like how you look," he said. He didn't sound like a little boy, or even like a young man like Van, but like a _man …_ and he was noticing her

Hitomi didn't like it at all and she didn't know how to respond to him.

"Dilandau took too long finding you. He should have known on sight that you weren't an ordinary girl," he drawled in his deep voice.

"Is that how you talk to all your students?" she blazed, angry that he was talking to her like that in the hallways of her school. There was no one there yet, but she was angry that he was talking to her like that at all. If he knew she and Van were married, she bet he wouldn't be.

"You know that's not how things are, so why bother with the pretense when we're alone?"

Hitomi ground her teeth together at the way he said the word 'alone' and opened the door to the office. She didn't talk to the secretary, but put the keys back on the counter and moved to leave without saying a word.

Principal Voris was talking to the secretary, but when she and Folken came in, he followed them out again, talking to Folken. As a matter of fact, he was inviting Folken into his office for a chat.

"I can't just now. I have a session with Miss Kanzaki just now, so I'm afraid …"

"Just for a moment," Voris was saying. "I'm sure Miss Kanzaki can wait for a minute."

Hitomi smiled and said smugly, "I'm sure I could."

Folken gave her a dirty look and then slid two of his fingers up his sleeve. Hitomi didn't see what he was doing. It looked like he was doing some sort of magic trick, because he had put his hand on Principal Voris' shoulder.

If Folken did something with his fingers behind the principal's ear Hitomi didn't see what it was, but within seconds, hardly a pause in conversation, Voris was insisting that Folken's session with Hitomi was much more important and excusing him. Hitomi had never seen anything like it. She stared. What had happened?

"Come on," Folken said. He put his hand under her elbow and steered her away from the principal and away from the office.

Suddenly, Hitomi was really spooked. Maybe it was his touch, or maybe what she had just seen him do. She touched her necklace. It was still warm, but Hitomi was having other thoughts now. Van had lied! Elemental abilities! What a lie! What she had just seen Folken do and what she had seen done at The Voltage Room proved it. There was no way Van was right about what their abilities could do! The inconsistency made her doubt everything Van had ever said, which made her sick. She'd been counting on him. Even after all this time – two months – she realized she'd been counting on him, but now it seemed there was nothing to count on. He hadn't told her the truth.

Hitomi felt totally trapped as she got into the car beside Folken.

"I knew your aunt," he was saying. "I didn't know if Dilandau told you. I knew your aunt quite well. Akira was a lovely woman."

"Thank you," Hitomi said, looking around her uncomfortably.

"Try not to be so uptight," he said, encircling the back of her neck with his fingers.

"Please don't touch me!" she said, almost screeching as she pushed his hand away.

He started the car and they started driving. Once they were a block away from the school, Hitomi got him to stop the car.

"What is it?" he inquired, looking at her seriously.

"We don't need to go out for breakfast. You need to talk to me. I don't believe you're taking me to Van, so just tell me what you want me for."

"You don't know?"

"If I knew, I wouldn't be putting up with this. Why did you come to my school to meet me? Tell me quickly, or I'll react and …"

"Of course, I want to be able to drive my car after my conversation with you, so there's no need to threaten me." He paused, "It was my intention to get to know you slowly and then to introduce myself to you honestly."

"Why do you want to get to know me? And your methods seem underhanded to me!"

"Maybe they were," he admitted. "But there's such an age gap between us."

As he spoke, she was having flashbacks of her conversation with Van about age differences. The difference between her and Van was four and a half years. The difference between Marlene and Allen was nine, but the difference between herself and Folken had to be close to fifteen. He wasn't about to say what she thought he was, was he? If he confessed that he wanted her in _that_ kind of a relationship with him, she was going to lose her mind.

"I knew you hadn't been brought up with the same knowledge as those expected to inherit the power have been," he continued. "Akira wouldn't have taken the time and attention to instruct you. I loved her, but she couldn't concentrate on something like that. And then there's Van. It isn't the tradition for younger children to inherit anything, so Van was never trained. His abilities were sort of a surprise, you see. Then when he grew up he was behaving himself like a loose canon, but I think sensei and I have got him under control. He's grateful for the training. Training I want to give you, too."

"So, Van didn't know the truth about how to use …"

Folken's eyes glinted wickedly. "Van was told absolutely nothing real. I told you, Balgus knew I was to get the ability from him, because I'm the oldest child of his younger brother, and obviously the heir. There are exceptions, of course."

Hitomi had never heard what he was talking about before. Van had not said anything about there being a logic to succession. She was so relieved that he hadn't lied to her again that her heart lifted in her chest.

"He taught me how to use ice …" she said, trying to defend Van.

"Obviously! I'd thank you not to trash the kitchen in my club. Which reminds me, I was going to tell you. For pity sake, don't go talk to Dilandau if you want to talk!"

"What?" Hitomi breathed, totally shocked by what he said.

"You were on _my_ guest list, but you asked for Dilandau. And there I was hoping that you were upfront enough to confront me if you wanted to know something. Ridiculous! You should have come to me from the first!"

Hitomi breathed an angry breath. It hadn't even occurred to her to show up at The Voltage Room, walk up to the bouncer and say, 'Hi, I'd like to meet with Folken Fanel.' The thought hadn't even entered into her head. "I didn't realize you'd be so inviting," she said.

"Dilandau told you I wanted to meet you. I _invited_ you. I asked you to come see me that day you came to our hideout and caused that ruckus with Dilandau. That offer didn't expire even after you and Van wrecked our new stadium. I could have come after you for revenge, but I didn't. That's how generous I am."

"Generous?" Hitomi hadn't thought of ruining their stadium or the kitchen at the Voltage Room as being destructive. Doubtless, it was, but she had only been thinking about getting what she wanted and vanquishing evil. Instead, Folken made it sound like she had done something to personally injure him, and he was (very delicately) forgiving her.

"Going after you for such poor behaviour would have been unforgivable since I want to be your friend. But I'm serious. Don't go spoiling any more of my buildings, or I might have to do something about your wild behaviour. You're just like Van! Can't you two keep your cool under pressure?"

Hitomi bit her lip and didn't answer him. _Just like Van?_

"Can we drive again?" he asked. "I'd really like to take you out."

"Wait," she said, thinking hard about her conversations with the bouncers outside the club. "The bouncer said that Dilandau was waiting for me the first time I went and I don't remember what he said the second time. I think they just let me in."

"They got their instructions mixed up the first time. Trust me, I spoke to them about that, but the second night you came, well, I would have come to greet you, but I was … busy."

"Nice excuse," Hitomi said cynically.

"Hey! You saw me! Our eyes met," he said simply.

Hitomi shook her head bewilderedly. How is it that she keeps on having these moments with Fanel boys without realizing it? Van also said that she had practically rubbed up against him any number of times and not noticed him. Had the same stupid thing happened with Folken?

"I don't remember," she said at last. "When did our eyes meet?"

"Okay, maybe you didn't know who you were looking at."

"Were you one of the Van's that I chased out of the kitchen?" she questioned, feeling freaked out.

He laughed. "Of course not! I guess you didn't recognize that I was looking at you. I saw you come into the entrance with that Abaharaki boy, but I apologize that I couldn't come greet you. I was performing."

_He was the singer that packed the place!_

She absorbed the idea while Folken asked, "Come on. I want to treat you." And he pulled his car back into the driving lane.

"Your hair was different …" she said slowly.

"Yeah, they made me cut it. I did the show and then went in to get it cut the next day. I won't be doing another show for awhile. I wouldn't appear on stage with this hack job of a haircut."

"If you are in charge of Dilandau, why did you let him order you around like that?" Hitomi asked, thinking of the way Dilandau commanded him to play something.

"Oh, you mean him asking me to play? I didn't like that, but with so many people watching and one of my alias' to maintain, I decided to let it slide; although I don't like it when Dilandau is disrespectful. He should know better. Besides, I gave him the job of telling off record labels that approach me."

"You sing very well. It's no wonder everyone goes crazy for you. I saw a girl being carried out of your show because she fainted," Hitomi admitted.

"Really? Everyone goes crazy for me, eh? Did you go crazy too?" he asked casually.

Even though there was a certain note in his voice that sounded like he wasn't serious, Hitomi still didn't feel comfortable with him. Her stone didn't hurt and she did want to hear the rest of what he had to say.

Folken took her to a little restaurant that looked like it was trying to imitate a cottage in France. It served crapes, and had a little garden path by which its customers were to enter by. Hitomi was impressed … it looked like a really ideal … romantic sort of place.

He sat her down by the window on a tiny guided chair and looked at her like she was an angel, but she felt awkward. If he had loved her aunt … Akira had probably been about five or six years older than him … perhaps even more. Hitomi felt like she was having breakfast with her lover … or her father – a curious combination. Both effects were terrible, but they became a hundred times worse when he ordered breakfast for her, and ordered all her favourites.

"Are you stalking me?" she asked, looking around the dinning room and hoping ardently that there was no one there who knew her.

He shrugged his shoulders. "It's not a big deal. I know your stats."

"Hey, I have a question," she started, finally feeling like she was getting her feet under her. "If the chain of succession is so obvious, then you should have known all along who was going to get my aunt's power. You would have known it was me from the beginning." She waited for his reaction, but he didn't say anything. "You did, didn't you?"

Folken smiled, like he was enjoying himself hugely. "Yeah, I knew."

"So, why have Dilandau find me?"

"Well, I needed to have someone keep an eye on you while you were growing up. Dilandau was a friend of yours before Akira died, so if I got him to watch you, then you wouldn't be suspicious. Plus, you had a crush on him, and he was in no danger of being interested in you, because … he's been in love with Celena for … I don't know … forever. But, of course, I didn't tell him everything. However, he told me everything, so I know these little things about you."

"That makes sense," Hitomi said, nodding. "I still don't like your methods."

He shrugged. "I couldn't do it myself. I'm very busy, but after Dilandau failed so miserably last summer, I decided to take matters into my own hands. So, I ended up at your school."

"How did you manage to get a position?"

"That's one of the things I'd like to teach you."

"Like what you did to Principal Voris just now?" Hitomi asked, pausing, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. "What exactly do you want to teach me?"

"Everything!" he answered simply as their food was placed in front of them.

"And what would you get out of teaching me everything? There must be something in it for you." Hitomi didn't touch her food, but leaned forward and looked into his face carefully.

"You make me sound so mercenary. I'm not, you know. We're just the same and so, of course, I'd want to take a cute little girl like you under my wing," he smiled.

"Was that intended to be funny?" she asked, thinking that his symbol was the crow and what a bad pun it was.

He smiled, putting his tongue in his cheek. "No."

"I'm sorry, I just find it difficult to believe that there's nothing specific you want out of this."

"I apologize, there is, but I don't think you're ready to hear it. You obviously don't trust me, at all. Don't worry, it doesn't surprise me, and I don't blame you, but I want to work on that before I tell you what I want. It's nothing really, so don't worry about it," he said, seeing Hitomi's shocked expression.

"I have to hear it. I can't trust you until I hear what you want," she said, meeting his eyes levelly.

"Well, have you accepted that our lives are not conventional because of our differences to regular humans? We don't live in this world like normal people. We get by because of our talents. There's no need to work hard in life if you don't want to. There's no need to do anything that you don't want to. The slightest flaring of your true skills can make money if applied properly. It can make you into the person you want to be. You can be the woman who walks into a room and makes every man in it fall to his knees in absolute adoration if that's what you want," he said tantalizingly, in a low avid tone.

Hitomi was nearly hypnotized by him.

"All you need is a little practice, and a little tutelage. I'm willing to give you both, if you'll …"

"If I'll what?"

"Take me up on my offer," he finished.

"Please stop implying things and tell me what you want me to do in exchange for your friendship, services, and all that," she asked, forcing herself to be short with him. The effect his voice had on her was still tingling in her nerve endings.

"I want a chance …" he said, and as he spoke, he must have known that she was faking irritation. She very much wanted to hear what he had to say. "To make you my lover."

* * *

Author's Notes: This chapter was so fun to write! Thanks to Kaytala for betareading and absolutely everyone who reads and reviews. The comments I got last time were out of this world. They were amazing! It's enough to make a person want to work on this story forever, just to make it perfect for everyone who reads and has insights like that. I LOVE YOU GUYS! 

And the forum is already up. Cheers!


	17. Forbidden Love

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I've been thinking of talking to the person who did.

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Forbidden Love**

Hitomi hadn't been able to relax as Folken drove her back to school. She got out of his car and thought about what he'd said back at the restaurant.

After his confession, she sat there with her jaw slack until she found the nerve to ask, "What? Are you in love with me?"

"Of course not. Don't be ridiculous! Not even you are _that_ naïve, are you? I said I wanted a chance. I didn't say that I wanted you to go that far. Right now, I just want you to take a step or two out of your comfort zone and give me the chance to get to know you. That's all. We can take things slowly, but I do want you to understand my goal. That will be what's on my mind when we're together … from now on."

Hitomi's skin began to crawl. She stuttered, "I'm too young for you."

"Not in our world. In our world, all convention along those lines is abandoned because there are not many of us. Even you, now that you know what you are – could you even desire a man who wasn't strong like you? I'm not asking you to decide on me. I'm asking for a chance."

She didn't have the courage to tell him that she was Van's wife. As soon as Folken told her his true intentions, she had this sickly feeling that Van knew this was going to happen. That was why he told her about Folken and what he had done to Van's parents … so that she wouldn't be tempted by Folken's offer. That was why Van wanted her to marry him … so she absolutely knew his feelings for her before he went away. And that was why Van didn't want her to tell anyone that they were married … so that Folken wouldn't make her a widow while he was in his brother's care.

Hitomi bit her lip and slammed Folken's car door when they made it back to the school.

Folken didn't seem to notice, but instead, bid her a quick goodbye and told her to think about their conversation. He reminded her that he wanted an answer by the end of the week. He wanted to know if she'd at least try a relationship with him, or if she was going to reject him out of hand.

Hitomi turned away from him, and found that she couldn't go back into the school. Making herself go to class just now would be too much; way too much for her to handle. Instead, she walked towards the bus stop and caught a bus heading towards downtown. She wanted Van's advice on how to deal with this situation, but as his advice was not to be had, she decided that the next most valuable thing was his steady black handwriting, so she was on her way to the bank to have a look at his letters to her.

Once at the bank, she took out their marriage certificate and ran her fingers along the signature of the confidant man who had signed it. She took out the wedding ring and put it on. She'd wear it from now on, even if she had to wear it on her right hand. Needing Van the way she did just now, she didn't care if there were consequences. It wasn't very bridal. No one would notice.

After she reread his notes, she left the bank. It was like going to a museum to see her husband's love for her, and it was brutal. Her feelings for Van were consuming her now. She felt more alone than ever as she paced the sidewalk outside.

She wanted to tell Folken the truth about her and Van. It would feel so good to stop hiding from the consequences of what they had done. However, she didn't believe for one second that Van had intentionally joined up with Folken. There had to be something that neither Folken, nor Dilandau, was willing to admit. What did they want him for? In any case, he was under their control; maybe like what Hitomi had seen Folken do to Principal Voris. Was Folken so desperate to have her that he would kill Van in order to free her for himself? A man who had killed his parents could easily kill his brother too. Hitomi couldn't chance it.

Van had been very serious when he spoke to her about how dangerous Folken was, so she found it difficult to trust that Folken was being honest with her. She believed Van – everything that he had said about Folken. He was not a person to be meddled with. An awful feeling was slowly inching its way into her mind. How far was she going to have to go to protect Van from Folken?

That was what she thought about as she walked aimlessly between the skyscrapers and through the October frost. Her mind felt muddled. She couldn't think straight. If she refused Folken without reason, other than that he obviously made her painfully uncomfortable with his dark eyes – so like Van's – what would be the result? Hitomi didn't know.

She thought about taking Folken up on his offer, but refusing to let the relationship advance to intimacy. But even friendship didn't seem safe. She kept thinking that he had made Principal Voris do what he wanted. He had probably used those powers for control to get himself his position as a counselor at the school, too. Couldn't he do the same thing with her if she didn't willingly go along with his plans? She couldn't risk letting the situation get like that. Even if Folken let her into his world enough that she eventually found the real Van – it would still be like a betrayal. She would have become friends with Folken in order to find him, but Van wouldn't want her if she'd compromised their love. Even if she'd only done it in order to rescue him from a terrible situation.

Hitomi felt even sicker as she walked. It didn't matter how much she moved, how much she evaluated the situation, how much she needed the information Folken offered, or how much she wanted to give up everything for Van. She had always been willing to give up everything for Van, including her relationship with her family, but it didn't matter how far she was willing to go – there were no options. There was no way for her to give everything up to be with him – no logical tradeoff. He was gone! She walked more and nothing was ever decided on, or could be decided on. She stayed just as confused as ever.

Being away from Van was really starting to wear her down.

At last, Hitomi got on a bus and went home. She got let off the bus a couple blocks away from her parents' complex. She saw Marlene and her father drive up into the parkade from the end of the block. Her dad was supposed to be picking her up from school, as well as Marlene, since she didn't have detention anymore, but she had stood him up. She hadn't done it intentionally, but she had forgotten completely because of her conversation with Folken. Hitomi wasn't wearing a watch, so she had no idea how long her dad had waited for her before he had given up and come home. He would probably have a few choice words to say to her when she got home. _Ugh!_

Hitomi dragged her feet.

Then she stopped walking and stood still. This sucked!

She sat down on the curb and questioned how cold she really was. Was she cold enough that she wanted to go into the apartment right away? She thought about going to Yukari's. She hadn't given Yukari her keys back, so she could take care of that. She stood up and started back towards the bus stop, when she heard a sound. What was it? Allen's motorcycle. What was he doing here?

Then Hitomi saw the most startling thing. He stopped in front of the complex and beeped his horn, and then he drove around to the alley. Hitomi took to her feet and followed him. What was he doing? Soon, she was running, and she made it just in time to see Marlene coming out the back door, but Marlene didn't make it in time to mount Allen's motorcycle. She couldn't - Hitomi was standing in the way with her arms folded and her legs apart with the nastiest scowl imaginable on her face.

"Marlene, what the FREAK are you doing?" Hitomi demanded, noting her sister's tight leather-looking pants and the look of flushed excitement on her cheeks.

Marlene looked surprised to see Hitomi, but she managed to say sweetly. "We're going on a date."

"Allen," Hitomi said, turning to look at him. He'd taken off his helmet and was looking at her like he was embarrassed and Hitomi thought he had every reason to look like that. What was he thinking? There was no way he and Marlene were a good idea, and he knew it! "Don't you think it's a little late in the year to still be driving your motorcycle? Shouldn't you put it in the garage until spring?"

"It's okay, 'Tomi," Marlene said, using Hitomi's nickname for the first time since she had been back.

"Allen, what are you thinking?" Hitomi asked loudly, still thinking she'd have better luck reasoning with Allen than Marlene. "We already talked about this. I _asked_ you to stay away from her, but now I'm TELLING you."

"This isn't any of your business!" Marlene shrieked.

"Right," Hitomi said coldly. "Allen, talk quickly. What the HELL are you thinking? She's my freaking kid sister. She's not for you. She's in grade ten – GRADE TEN! What the … What are you thinking?"

However, Allen didn't answer her, but instead said quietly, "Marlene, let's go."

Marlene moved to walk past Hitomi, but Hitomi grabbed her by the ear, and really lost her temper. "Marlene, we're going into the house, and I don't care how angry you are with me, but I'm telling Mom and Dad everything about this. Sneaking off to run around with Allen. Ohh!"

"Let her go!" Allen intervened, jumping from his bike.

"You, shut up!" Hitomi bellowed at him.

"Wait, Hitomi, this isn't what you think!" Allen said.

"I gave you a chance to explain things your way, but you didn't take it, so time's up. We're going in the house," Hitomi said, holding onto Marlene's ear even harder and manhandling her sister.

"Give me a chance!" Allen burst, following them.

Hitomi stopped and turned Marlene around to face him. "Are you saying you weren't going on a date with Marlene?" Hitomi hated herself for phrasing it that way, because she felt like it made her sound exactly like her father. What else was she going to do? She couldn't let Marlene get involved with Allen. Allen would break her heart and leave her fragile forever at best. At worst, her life would end up more like Hitomi's with people she loved suffering – like Millerna. Hitomi couldn't have that! But she waited for Allen's response.

Marlene looked at Allen with pleading eyes, and Allen nodded, "That's what was going on."

"Enough said. I warned you, Allen, but it's worse now. You come back here again and I'll freaking BURY YOU! YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" Hitomi screamed at the top of her lungs, and meant every word of it. Today was not the day to mess with her.

He nodded.

"Get out of my sight!" she said disgustedly.

Allen turned away like he was truly miserable, but also like he wouldn't do anything to stop Hitomi. Hitomi didn't wait to watch him leave as she turned Marlene back towards the complex.

Marlene screamed out for Allen and bellowed at Hitomi's cruel twisting. Hitomi wasn't moved to compassion in the least. She couldn't believe how stupid Marlene was being. Besides all of her other objections, her mind kept huffing, "Nine years older …as if!" Hitomi wanted to hit her, but managed to escape doing it as she hauled Marlene down the hall to the elevator.

After the doors had closed Hitomi finally let go of her and yelled at her. "Stop screaming!"

"Why did you do that? What have you really got against Allen?" Marlene was crying now and her cheeks were very red as her tears streamed.

Hitomi rolled her eyes, and didn't answer. When the door opened, Hitomi grabbed Marlene's upper arm and maneuvered her back into the apartment.

"What is this?" her father asked when the two girls came crashing into the living room.

"Dad," Hitomi started, "Where did Marlene say she was going just now?"

"To Katy's," he answered, taking off his reading glasses.

"Well, I just pulled her off the back of Allen's motorcycle. She lied to you. She was going on a date with him," Hitomi said bluntly. "You remember him – that charming guy who brought me home like four hours late last time?"

"What?" he looked at Marlene like he couldn't believe what Hitomi said.

Marlene was huddled on the floor, behaving as rationally as a spoiled child who is on the brink of a temper tantrum. "You don't understand. None of you understand. I'm in love with him, and he's in love with me."

"He's in love with you? Don't kid yourself. He's in love with anyone, but … more importantly, have you been sneaking off to see him other times besides today?" Hitomi asked.

"No," Marlene said, looking at the ground.

"Don't lie, Marlene, you aren't near as good at it as some people I know."

"Quiet Hitomi!" her father commanded, seeming to finally get his bearings. "Thank you for bringing her back, but I'd thank you to leave the rest up to me. Now, let me see," he said, looking depressed and seeming to try to figure out how to proceed. They'd never had many family arguments, but since Hitomi came back they were having them all the time. "Obviously, lying to me is punishable, and running around with Allen," - here he cringed - "is inexcusable. I'll have to ground you for two weeks."

"What I did isn't near as bad as what Hitomi did. Allen is the leader of the Abaharaki. She promised you she wouldn't have anything to do with them from now on!"

Hitomi's heart dropped at what Marlene said. The consequences … Marlene had flipped the situation and now everything was Hitomi's fault

Hitomi put her hand to her mouth and sunk into the armchair that was by her.

"Is this true?" her father asked, white-lipped and furious.

Hitomi didn't have to answer because Marlene piped up with, "He is! He told me!"

"Hitomi?" he inquired quietly, waiting for her.

She sat there and wondered what she could say to her father. This was definitely the end of their relationship. It was unlucky that her mother wasn't home from work yet because now Hitomi would have to sort all this out without any support.

In the end, she simply nodded. "Do you want to hear an explanation?"

"I don't know," he said quietly. It was like he, too, was realizing that his trust in her could never be restored – not now.

"So Dad, aren't you going to ground her, too?" Marlene burst, looking unhappy that her admission had not produced more fireworks. To Marlene's eyes, her father looked like he was calming down. She didn't realize that his still features were really those of a man who was trying to control ultimate rage.

Hitomi, knowing much better than her sister what was to come, said, "Marlene, I'll come talk to you later. Right now, I need to talk to Dad alone. Would you mind clearing out for a minute?"

Marlene looked at her father and he indicated that she ought to do what Hitomi said. Marlene didn't like this one bit. Thus far, she and her father had sort of been a team against Hitomi and their mother. With this new development, it looked like the power was shifting and that Hitomi was getting back in his good graces. It wasn't possible for her to understand that what was happening between Hitomi and their father was the result of a deep sort of wound … one that might never heal. They hadn't had many conflicts, so little Marlene didn't understand the significance of her betrayal of Hitomi's secret. She stood up angrily and rushed to the bedroom, slamming the door behind her, exactly like an angry little girl.

"I had been thinking that things were getting better with you," he said, choosing his words very carefully. "I thought that you were going to shape up, but …"

"It hasn't happened," Hitomi finished for him. "I'm sorry. I couldn't leave my life back there behind. I didn't even want to. If Van hadn't called you and arranged for me to come home, I would never have come home again to live."

"No?"

"No," she said, shaking her head, and finally speaking the truth to him. "I was so engrossed in what I was doing that I hadn't even thought to contact you and Mom to let you know that I was okay. I didn't think I'd ever come back."

"And you were okay with that?" he asked, spitting the words.

"Yeah," she answered, not allowing herself to be frightened by him. "I'm an adult now and I expected to live the rest of my life as an adult. Instead, I was choked back to this old life like a dog at the end of a leash. You wouldn't give me any freedom, and when I was good, you hardly gave me any rewards."

"You don't have to live here!"

"This is the first I've heard of it. I thought you and Mom expected me to stay until I got my credits."

"I can't believe that you didn't think of your mother and me when you were kidnapped at gun point in front of our very eyes! You ungrateful little …" he was livid and he was standing. Hitomi had never been hit by her father in all the years of her life. She had never seen him hit anyone, but she thought that he might.

"I'll get my stuff together," she said quickly, before he could finish. "I'll leave!" Hitomi didn't wait for her father to answer, and instead went to the bedroom.

Marlene was lying on her bed, crying as if her world was over. Hitomi didn't speak to her but started to pack her cases. She was careful to only take the things that she had brought when she came home after she had been away with Van.

Oh! She loved Van! She didn't know why that was the only thing beating in her heart as she packed her suitcases. Her heart soared as she thought about how this thing with her family would free her. She'd practically been under lock and key while she lived with them, but now she felt like … she could do anything … like she really could give up everything to be with him.

After she packed her things, she went into the kitchen and got the phone to call a cab. She'd go to a hotel that night. No problem, Van had left her with plenty of money. Once there, she could figure out what she wanted to do. But as she started dialing the number, her dad disconnected the phone.

He had his back to her, but he said, "Don't go tonight. At least sleep in your own bed tonight and let me think about this. We can talk about this more in the morning with your mother here."

Hitomi agreed and hung up the phone.

* * *

Hitomi paced around her and Marlene's empty bedroom. Marlene was speaking to her father and mother. Hitomi didn't want to see her mother. She knew her mother would pity her and try to see things from her point of view, but Hitomi didn't want her to try. Hitomi promised that she'd make it up to her mother somehow, but for this second the best thing Hitomi could do for her was stay clear of a family conflict. Hitomi planned to leave home so that she wouldn't spoil her parents' marriage by making them fight on different teams. It would be better if she just walked out now. If Van came back … no! _When_ Van came back, she'd leave A.S.A.P. anyway, so there was no reason for her mother to break her neck for her now. She was an adult, even though she hadn't gotten her stupid high school diploma yet, but why did that even matter?

She sighed. It was because Van said it mattered.

Hitomi stopped pacing and laid down on the bed, firm in her resolve. If her mother came in, Hitomi would pretend to be asleep even if her mother kicked her in the ribs to try to wake her up.

Finally, the door opened, but it was Marlene who came in. She didn't seem to care if Hitomi was asleep because she started talking, maybe like she was talking to the wall, or someone who wasn't there, but Hitomi heard every word. "It's not hard to see why you live the way you do. That you just do whatever you want without regard for your family, or convention, or the rules, or anything. You met Allen and knew him for months, and yet a guy like that didn't move your heart. He's incredible, and still you weren't interested in him. If Allen doesn't do anything for you, then who can?" she asked, and then she paused to continue on slowly. "You must be strong - stronger than anyone. That's why you get kidnapped like a heroine in a novel and come back unscathed with a pretty dress to hang in your closet and a tattoo on your arm as if to scream that no one could ever be as cool as you if they lived to be a hundred. You're not even pretty."

Hitomi opened her eyes at that statement. Marlene wasn't even looking at her. She was looking in the mirror, but there was no doubt she was talking to Hitomi, and saying such things out loud.

"Well, it doesn't matter. I saw Allen and I just knew that he was the man for me. It was love at first sight, except better than anything that could be explained that simply. Yeah, I'm fifteen and you don't think it's good to date a guy that much older. None of that matters. Dad says you're leaving, and I don't care. You can go straight to … hell."

It wasn't in Marlene's nature to swear. She was naturally sweet, like a flower, so the use of this word really caught Hitomi's attention.

"And if you think your little threat to him will keep him away from me, you're dead wrong. He'll be back to see me tomorrow, like he's come everyday." At this part she turned and approached Hitomi's bed looking down into Hitomi's green eyes with her pale blue ones. "And one more thing – if you ever touch me again …" Here Marlene hesitated.

"Don't worry," Hitomi interjected, not batting an eyelash, and not letting Marlene finish a threat her baby sister couldn't keep no matter how pissed off she was. "I won't."

Marlene left the room saying that she was going to sleep on the couch until Hitomi was gone, which suited Hitomi fine. It wasn't that Hitomi didn't care how her sister felt. She did. She just didn't think that Marlene had any idea how dangerous it would be for her psyche if she became emotionally involved with Allen – a man who would ditch her at the first excuse – when she was so young. Hitomi kept perspective during her sister's heart felt proclamation and soon it turned into nothing more than a hissy fit. Well, Marlene couldn't get with Allen. Hitomi wouldn't allow it, at least, until she was old enough. She wouldn't go easy on Allen if she saw him with Marlene again. It didn't even occur to her that she had had the same problem with Van.

Marlene would get over it and Hitomi wouldn't worry about it.

About a half an hour later, her mother did knock on the door, and Hitomi did what she had promised herself she would do, but unlike Marlene, her mother didn't make any confessions. Instead, she merely asked if Hitomi was awake and when there was no answer she went away.

Hitomi didn't cry when her mother closed the bedroom door. Instead, she made a pact with herself that she would make it up to her mother. Someday, she would come back and explain herself, but right now, she still couldn't tell her everything – not yet.

In the morning, Hitomi got up before the rest of the family and took her bags with her to the bus stop. She had some idea of asking Yukari if she could stay with her for a few days until she found an apartment to rent. She wanted the company and Yukari never asked her questions she couldn't answer. Yukari was a great friend and Hitomi was very happy that at least she was still in her life.

And then on top of absolutely everything else that was driving Hitomi into the ground – there was still one more problem. What was she going to tell Folken? He said he wanted her to be his lover.

* * *

Author's Notes: Special thanks to Kaytala for beta reading and to everyone who read and reviewed last time. THANK YOU! 

Obviously this signifies the last boring chapter. After this it gets pretty rowdy! Look to my forum for an explaination regarding the title of this chapter if you didn't get it. You can access my forum through my profile page, so come and make some noise, after you review! Cheers! Thanks again!


	18. The Lover

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. I'm just sort of a silly girl.

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen**

**The Lover**

Hitomi stood at her locker, cramming her luggage that didn't fit at all into it, and scanning the halls for Yukari. The sooner she talked to her about staying at her house, the better, but Hitomi didn't see her anywhere. However, Hitomi had come early to avoid seeing her family, so she thought that if she prowled the halls long enough, Yukari would definitely turn up.

Instead, she saw Amano approaching her. He was definitely at school early.

"Hi," Hitomi said.

Amano stepped up to her. He had a curious expression on his face. It was one Hitomi could only describe as regretful. "Hi," he said back to her.

"Are you okay?" Hitomi asked.

"Yeah," he said, putting his hand in his pocket and leaning against the lockers. "I just came to talk to you about a little … problem."

"What is it?"

"Yukari said she lent you her keys so that you could come to school to work out in the morning."

Hitomi's heart fell in her chest. She hadn't given them back!

"And she needed them to let the team into the gym for track practice after school," he continued.

"Did she get in trouble with the team?"

He nodded, looking bad. "She also got in trouble with the faculty for lending you her keys. Apparently, that's really against school rules."

Hitomi bit her lip anxiously. "Did she get detention?"

"It's worse than that," he admitted hesitantly.

"Worse?"

"The gym coach had her removed as the team's manager. She said that if Yukari was going to behave as irresponsibly as you, then she'd better get out."

Hitomi felt sick. This was all her fault. Yukari was her friend. "How's Yukari taking it?"

"Bad. She asked me to get the keys from you and to return them to the office for her. She's not even coming to school today."

"I'm really sorry …" Hitomi started, finding the keys in her coat pocket and giving them to Amano.

"Yeah. I'd tell you to tell her yourself, but she also told me to tell you not to talk to her for a while. She probably just needs time," he said, taking the keys from Hitomi. "I gotta go."

"Yeah," Hitomi said, watching Amano make his way towards the office.

Hitomi banged her forehead against the lockers. She was the worst!

* * *

Even without the injury Hitomi had done Yukari, she felt like garbage that day. The whole day seemed to pass like a nightmare. She tried to focus on her schoolwork, but once again it was all information she'd already been taught, so she had a lot of time to think about everything that was bothering her.

Her father and sister hated her. It didn't seem to sweeten the deal at all that Hitomi knew that her mother was not angry with her. Instead, it only seemed to make it worse. The one person that Hitomi wanted to go to, in the absence of Van, was unavailable.

She had told Allen off, and the rest of the Abaharaki wouldn't speak to her on Van's orders. Not that she particularly cared what Allen thought anymore. He was an ass for getting involved with Marlene. She had told him to stay away and he ignored her, which made her want to become bitter against him – like Eries. Oh, she would have liked to talk to Eries again. She would be the perfect person to have a rant over Allen with, but she wasn't speaking to Hitomi.

Then Hitomi thought about Millerna. She knew that at a moment like this, when she was feeling so vulnerable that it would be in her nature to exaggerate the friendship she had had with Millerna. Yeah, Millerna had been great.

So, who was left for her to turn to? She didn't feel like she could deal with all of this alone, and for the first time in her life was considering calling a help line or something. Maybe a counselor, but she bit her tongue on the thought. It just reminded her of Folken's invitation. He said that anytime they were together from then on, he would be thinking about her like 'that'. What exactly did 'that' entail? Hitomi didn't want to know, and besides all that she still hadn't made up her mind as to what she was going to do with him. It was Tuesday. She only had three days left with which to make up her mind, and the ticking of the clock on the wall was making her mad. She wanted to leave class, but the more seconds that passed, were seconds lost on not figuring out what to do with him.

Then, at the end of the school day, Hitomi stood by her locker, looking down the hallway at the entrance of the school to see the snow falling steadily. That should have comforted her considering how much the snowfall should have reminded her of who she truly was, but instead it only served to remind her that it was cold outside … and she had no where to go.

At this extremely opportune moment, a young man came up behind Hitomi and said to her quietly.

"You look terrible, Kanzaki. So, do you wanna come over to my house?"

It was Dryden.

Leave it to him to ask at the only moment when she would have considered accepting. "Sure," she mumbled, "but if you lay one finger on me, you'll lose that finger."

"Naturally," he said smoothly, adjusting the glasses he wore that should have looked dorky, but didn't.

"And you'll have to carry my bags," she said, elaborating.

He laughed. "Sure, I'm a nice guy. Give me your backpack and I'll carry it."

Hitomi opened her locker with a crank to reveal three over-the-shoulder carrying bags crammed into the small space that was her locker. "I said 'bags', not 'bag' – plural."

Dryden's mouth dropped as he saw into her locker. "What the …"

"Yeah," she said, clicking her tongue on her teeth. "My parents threw me out last night, so I have to carry my house with me wherever I go from now on, but I'm already tired of carrying it, so come on and help me."

Hitomi took one strap in her hands and practically had to brace both legs on either side of the door in order to pull the first one out. The rest came out easier. Then, she carefully draped the straps over Dryden's shoulders and locked her locker contentedly. Then she headed towards the parking lot without carrying one of them.

"You know, Kanzaki, if I didn't really want to talk to you, there's no way I'd put up with this. Why on earth are you prancing?"

"I'm not prancing!" she denied emphatically, while walking a little daintier then before.

"Right."

Dryden took her out to his sports car. She didn't want to compare it with Van's convertible, but she couldn't help it. This car was something else. Van's car was cool, but it looked like Dryden's was from … Italy. It hardly had a trunk and what was back there was the disc changer. Hitomi had to carry one of her bags on her lap since there was no backseat, and the truck filled up quickly. It was silver and sexy all the way.

"I had no idea teenagers drove things like this," Hitomi said when Dryden got into the seat beside her.

"Well, I'm not your average teenager. Besides, this is a pretty ritzy school. Lots of the kids have impressive cars. I won't be driving this tomorrow, though. I don't like driving this car in the snow."

"What'll you be driving instead?" Hitomi asked curiously.

"Oh, I don't know. Something with four wheel drive," he said, pulling out of his parking stall and moving the car onto the street.

"You sound like you've got a choice," she commented.

"Well, I have seen your dad pick you up, and I've seen you take the bus. Don't get the wrong idea, but I've often wondered why you decided to come to _this _school. Why?"

"My dad thought that it was the only way to make sure I'd be safe at school," Hitomi admitted, too tired to question the uniqueness of his inquiry.

"Do you want to spend the night with me?" he asked abruptly.

Hitomi bolted upright in her seat while he laughed at her mercilessly.

"I said _I_ wouldn't touch you! I was just wondering if you needed a place to stay tonight since your parents kicked you out," he smiled, seeming happy to get a reaction out of her.

Hitomi leaned back more comfortably. He'd definitely regret it if he tried to attack her, so she decided to relax. "You wouldn't be worried that I'd turn into a freeloader?"

"I'd love it if you became my freeloader. I can see you in my mind very easily, walking across the front hall in your modest little pajamas with a toothbrush sticking out of your mouth. If one of my woman friends happened to see you I would love to see her writhe in discomfort while I explain quite honestly that there is no relationship whatever between the two of us, but that you live with me. She wouldn't believe me, and become jealous – thus becoming more attractive to me – and you wouldn't have to do a thing. Sounds marvy, doesn't it?"

"Jealous women attract you?" she asked, thinking that he said 'woman friends'. He definitely did not sound like a teenager. His speech patterns were all wrong. This wasn't the first time she'd considered that Dryden might not be a teenager after all, but just now she was so tired and forlorn that she almost didn't care what he was. Almost.

"It's not that I particularly like the emotion of jealousy. Usually, it turns a beautiful woman into a demon, but then she'll pout her lips and I have to go through the effort of convincing her that she is the only woman I see. I think I must get a kick out of restoring a woman's confidence."

"Hm … interesting turn on."

"Oh, did you want a list? I like women who …"

"Please DON'T finish that sentence," Hitomi interrupted hastily. "I'm much too innocent to hear it."

Dryden didn't continue at first, and when he did, his voice had lost all traces of amusement. Instead, he said wryly, "You shouldn't say such things about the men in your life. You wouldn't want it to get around that they didn't treat you right."

"Huh?"

"I wouldn't want a girl I had loved to say she was still innocent. I wouldn't like the sound of it one bit."

"Why?"

"I think it makes it sound like I didn't do a good job … if you catch my meaning. And who ever he was, he probably tried hard to please you. So, don't say you're innocent, say you're satisfied."

Hitomi flushed. Naturally, she hadn't even thought of that angle. It had been months since she had been with Van and she was still trying to play a high school student. It was a moment before she got her act together enough to say, "I wasn't trying to insult him. I just didn't want to hear your list, and I don't think that my love life is any of your business."

"That's better."

"Besides, why do you have to be so vulgar all the time? Don't you think about anything else besides your sex life?"

"Sure I do! I think about … I think about … I'm sure I think about something else."

"Like what?"

"Something," he answered vaguely. "I'll have to think about it and get back to you."

Hitomi shook her head and rolled her eyes. She should have known!

Dryden's house was not a house, but a mansion of incredible beauty and intricate design. He had to talk on an intercom with a security guard at the gate and a valet came to park the car when they pulled up to the main entrance. Dryden gave instructions as to what was to be done with Hitomi's bags and led her into a polished great hall. They were greeted by a maid who took Hitomi's hat and coat. Dryden asked the maid to serve drinks in the conservatory and led Hitomi up the stairs and into a humid and extremely tropical green space. There were glass panels for a ceiling and he sat her down at a little table by a window. When Hitomi sat down, she saw that the window overlooked another part of the house – the swimming pool.

There was a woman on the diving board. Hitomi looked and then she stared. She had never seen someone like that before in real life. The girl had the body of a supermodel, but when she leapt off the board, it was clear that she was better than that – an excellent athlete. As she disappeared into the water, Hitomi regretted that she was at such a distance. Hitomi couldn't see her well, and the girl was wearing a cap over her hair, anyway.

Hitomi was about to ask Dryden about her when he started talking, "I think about love."

At first, Hitomi didn't know what he was talking about, and then she suddenly realized that he was picking up their conversation from in the car. "Oh?" she said.

"I don't think I can help it," he continued.

"Okay then, what sort of love?"

"Well, you may not believe me, but I'm pretty bored with flirting. Of course, flirting is great in its own way, but I'm slowly becoming jaded, and I'm starting to question when the real fulfillment in a relationship is going to come. In other words, maybe the best thing isn't just to jump from woman to woman to woman."

"You sound like you're thinking of settling down, but isn't it a little early for that sort of thing? You're only eighteen, right?" Before she had even finished speaking, it hit her like a ton of bricks. Not only was Dryden not a teenager, but this conversation seemed to be going down the same lines as her conversation with Folken. What was with these friggin' men? "You're not a teenager, are you?"

"No," he admitted. "I'm twenty-five."

"You're not going to ask me to be 'that' person you're talking about, are you? The person you want to settle down with? 'Cause if that's the way this is going, then you'd better save it."

Dryden laughed. "No, Kanzaki, that's not what I was looking for. I was only trying to explain myself a little. Anyway, I'm digressing. I invited you here because I wanted to talk to you about something specific, and here I am going completely off track."

"What did you want to talk about?" Hitomi asked, totally relieved that she wasn't having yet another impossible guy confess to her.

"I just wanted to ask you about your tattoo."

"You've got to be kidding me! What is so significant about a stupid tattoo?" Everyone had been asking her about this, everyone had an opinion on it, everyone thought that she wanted to talk about it twenty four/seven with them, and she was getting pretty cross about the whole subject.

"I just wondered if you wanted to see mine?"

"Thank you, no," Hitomi said, sticking her nose in the air and looking again at the girl in the swimming pool. She didn't exactly think he was the ultimate man-whore anymore, but she still didn't want to chance seeing his tattoo. Who knew what it might be of, or where it might be!

"Fine then," Dryden said, not looking annoyed himself, but seeming to understand that Hitomi was just about at her limit. "Can I take you to see my portrait gallery? I could have our drinks taken there, instead."

"Whatever," Hitomi said. Then she thought about how rude she had sounded, so she amended her statement, "Sorry, Dryden, I don't want to take it out on you. I've had a supremely crappy couple of months and I'm just here looking for a way to relax."

"I understand. Come on, I think you'll like my gallery. It is quite lovely." He got up and pulled her chair away from the table for her.

"Oooo, such a gentleman!" Hitomi commented, following him out of the conservatory.

"Only when I don't have to pretend that I'm an ignorant kid."

Hitomi was still suspicious. If he was twenty-five, why was he pretending to be a teenager, anyway? "I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop," she said.

Dryden led her through several long corridors before he finally came to a set of double doors, which required a pin number as well as a thumb print scan. What was he going to show her?

He opened the doors and revealed a long gallery lined with many, many pictures.

"Let me show you the first one," he said, drawing her close to the canvas.

It was a picture of a crescent moon on a chain of stars. The painting, itself, was on navy velvet and the moon was painted hard white. Underneath the picture were the words 'The Moon' and underneath that it said 'Goddess of the Moon'. But who was the artist? It didn't say.

"Isn't it a beauty?" Dryden was saying. "Let me show you the next one."

The next portrait was one of a dragon. The dragon was silver and surrounded by people, all kinds of people, and all of them were bowing to it. The words that labeled the picture read, 'The Dragon', and then under that were the words 'Ace of Serpents'.

What was going on? This was exactly like her and Van!

"This one was difficult to get," Dryden said wistfully. "Those of us who saw it only saw it for a split second."

Hitomi moved on ahead of him to look at the next picture. It was of a massive black bird flying into the afternoon sky. The background was perfect blue. The first line read, 'The Crow', and the second line read, 'The Sorcerer'.

These were her, Van's and Folken's symbols. What did they have to do with Dryden and what did these other titles mean? She gave Dryden a quick glance before she moved onto the next one. He was looking at her intently, obviously gauging her reaction.

The fourth painting was of a splendid red rose dripping with dew. 'The Red Rose' followed by 'The Lover'.

She turned to look at Dryden.

He took her hand in his and kissed it. "Nice to meet you Goddess, as you can see, I'm The Lover."

* * *

Author's Notes: Special thanks to Kaytala for beta reading, and for everyone who's following this story. Cheers! Thanks to you all. I'll still be doing quick updates for the next two chapters, after that I'll probably go back to updating once a week. The forum is up. Thanks everyone! You rock!  



	19. The Tarot Cards

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne.

Author's Notes: I'd like to say, even before you read this chapter that this system is only loosely based on a tarot card deck. There's more than one deck, and I want to be free to make up my own cards. Enjoy!

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

**The Tarot Cards**

**The Explanation**

"You see," Dryden started his explanation to a dazzled Hitomi, "Remember that when you had your vision I was already a Tarot user, so I saw your vision. Not only you, but I received my power before Folken, or Van, so I've been powerful long enough to know all your symbols and your titles. Poor Van! Balgus probably thought that Folken would be the one to inherit the ability of a Tarot, so he didn't teach Van anything even though they lived together for so long, and he wouldn't have taught Folken anything because Folken was off pretending to be a syndicate boss by age sixteen. It's such a pity that Van wasn't trained properly. You see, that's what I'm doing here. I don't usually come to this house, though it is one of my properties. I have been living in a villa off the coast of Italy for the past few years. I wouldn't have come back to this country at all if it hadn't been for you and Van, but someone had to intervene. You two just can't continue burning buildings and causing a ruckus, or Van will never be able to hold his head up in company."

"What are you talking about?" Hitomi asked him, her eyes as large and buggy as balloons. "A Tarot? I've never heard that term before and what do you mean you're The Lover and I'm a Goddess? What are you talking about?"

Dryden's eyebrows went up. "You've never heard the name for what we are? You were never even told _that_ much? Oh dear! Kanzaki, we have got a lot of work to do. Where to start? Let me see. You've seen a tarot card deck before, haven't you?"

"Of course."

"Well, the idea for a tarot deck isn't from nothing. The basis for the characters on the cards is our race of people. Do you understand?"

She shook her head, "Not exactly."

"Well maybe we'll do better if I explain some of these portraits in more detail. I just have to go get a book and get our drinks. Then we can camp out here until dawn. Don't worry about school in the morning. School isn't important compared to this, and you need to learn about us as quickly as possible. Okay?"

"I don't know if I trust you," Hitomi blurted, not sure if she should commit to allowing Dryden to tell her these things. Van was her guide.

"Give me a chance," he said blithely. "Besides, I know you have a protection pendant around your neck. If it's not icing you to oblivion then you're safe. Okay?"

She felt the jewel and she realized that she did indeed feel safe, but it wasn't in her nature to trust anyone anymore. "You're not going to try to seduce me, are you?" she asked cautiously.

"Not likely. No offense to The Goddess of the Moon, but I have … more appealing prospects. Besides, I couldn't hit on The Dragon's wife seriously – he'd probably kill me!"

Hitomi took in a deep intake of breath. "How did you know?"

Dryden chuckled. "I'm The Lover. It comes with my talents. I know just by looking at you that you are married – a virtuous young woman who married The Dragon and encircled her arm in his symbol. I have no intentions to overstep my bounds with you, Kanzaki. I just want to explain the truth to you and help you out. Van too. I've never met him, but there's no way things can continue the way they are. I'll explain more about that after I explain who we are. You look like you badly need an explanation; so let's get to work."

**The Psychic**

After Dryden had gotten the drinks and the book he was looking for, he took Hitomi to a specific portrait further down the gallery. The image was of a pair of two yellow eyes. It took Hitomi a moment to figure out what kind of eyes, because the rest of the animal was dim, but she finally figured out that it was the body of a wolf. Van had said that the wolf was his uncle Balgus' symbol. The words were 'The Wolf' followed by the title, 'The Psychic'.

"Now you see," Dryden said, beginning his account with his book propped up on one arm. "This is the portrait for Balgus Fanel. A wolf does not necessarily fight with speed and strength alone. Wolves are known to stare down their opponents instead of actually participating in combat. So, Balgus became The Psychic because he could read people's minds. Kind of creepy, eh?"

"Yeah," Hitomi agreed.

"He was a famous fencer when he was young, and extremely talented. He went to world competitions and was extremely successful, but he earned himself a very bad name among Tarot users because he wasn't winning the fights fairly, and it was starting to become very noticeable."

"What do you mean?"

"He was able to read the mind of his opponent, so he knew where they would strike and block. Likewise, he also knew when they would leave themselves open and he would attack. Finally, it got quite bad. Even the judges were starting to notice that something was wrong. He was disqualified from several tournaments, and he earned himself a horrible reputation among us. It's very important that we aren't revealed to the general public. We have to keep our abilities secret. By the time Balgus finally stopped competing, no woman Tarot user would have him as a mate – which is horribly insulting – considering that we all mostly _want_ to be with people who are like us. Lots of us will accept nothing less."

"Why is that?" Hitomi asked, thinking of Van and Folken.

"One reason is that it's impossible for us to reproduce with a regular human," he said.

"What?"

"That's why Balgus and Flo never had any children. They couldn't."

"How do you know all this?" Hitomi asked, dumbfounded.

"Oh, it's all written down. The history of our people is very important – especially the personal details. Another reason for us to seek mates who are also Tarot users is that some of us tend to be pretty powerful, and we find it impossible to find a kindred spirit among normal humans. Some of us get so involved in our culture that even talking to a normal human is painful."

"Are you like that Dryden?"

"No. I like all kinds of women. I think of that kind of attitude as a form of racism. Anyway, Balgus did not inherit his power from his parents, but from an aunt. I won't bore you with all the details of their story just now, but I wanted to let you know that when two Tarot users mate, they always have at least one child with the abilities – always. It's usually the oldest. Sometimes, younger children will get it too," Dryden paused. "The power will lie dormant in certain members of our clan, usually the children who do not inherit the power and then it will generally be passed onto their oldest child, like in the case of Folken. It's weird that Van inherited the ability as well, but stranger things have happened, and those sorts of things seem to run in the Fanel family. Balgus was the younger child in his family and he inherited the abilities while Goau, the older son, did not. I have to point out that it was very weird. I don't know if Goau, Van's father, was trained or not, but anyway, things like that are very out of the ordinary. Like I said, normally, the ability goes to the younger sibling's oldest child. That also explains how you inherited your ability from your aunt Akira. Make sense?"

Hitomi blushed and nodded sheepishly, "You may need to explain it to me again."

"It's a lot to take in. Even I think it's complicated, so don't be afraid and ask me if you have any questions about that, okay?"

"Okay," she agreed, and forced herself not to feel stupid.

"Let me see if there is anything else I can tell you about Balgus before we move on," he said scanning the page. "Generally, no matter what other abilities a person has, they will have one element at their command. Balgus' was air. Other than those two abilities, not a whole lot is known about him. After the fiasco about fencing, he kind of went into hiding with Flo and broke off contact with all of us. From what I remember about the story, he was pretty pissed off. So, needless to say he wouldn't consent to an interview. Yup, that's about it. Let's move on."

**The Changeling**

"This is one I know you're going to want to see," Dryden said, taking her to the other side of the gallery and showing her a painting of a brilliant butterfly.

The words were 'The Butterfly' and the title was 'The Changeling', but underneath that official title two words were carved roughly into the heavy wood frame. Those two words were 'The Hermit'.

"Naturally, this is your aunt Akira's," Dryden said.

Hitomi gulped. "Tell me about her," she asked in a small voice.

"Well, a lot more is known about her than Balgus. Apparently, The Historian managed to get an interview with her before her death. There is a clear list of her discovered abilities. Let's see. The explanation her of symbol says that a butterfly has close ties to the spirit world. She was able to see and talk to ghosts," Dryden exclaimed excitedly. "She also had the ability to make herself any age she chose, which was why she was called The Changeling. Her element was lightning."

Suddenly, Hitomi realized something important. The Voltage Room was named for her aunt! That was why there was a picture of a butterfly behind the sign. At least Folken hadn't lied to her about one thing. He really had loved her aunt.

"And she had the uncanny ability to raise herself from the dead if she so chose," Dryden continued.

"What? Then why did she die?"

Dryden looked at Hitomi and continued with the notes as if she hadn't spoken. "The age she chose to appear most of the time was around the age of twenty-three. When asked why, she said that all ghosts, even the ghosts of children and people who lived into their old age, all appear to be in their early twenties. The ghosts were her friends and she wanted to fit in with them."

Hitomi didn't say anything at first. This was getting weirder and weirder. "So, why did she have to die?"

Dryden raised his eyes from the book and looked at Hitomi. "She probably didn't _have_ to die. She probably _chose_ to die. Do you see those words carved into the frame? Akira was very beautiful and very much desired by those of our clan. We're not inbred because of our contract laws, but I know for a fact that Akira had at least six Tarot users who would have loved to set up house with her – including Folken. She would have none of any of them. An angry suitor carved these words into the frame. From what is written here in the history, she chose to live in the land of the dead rather than here with us. Dying was probably just like going home for her. Plus, it's not known if she ever did raise herself from the dead. She could have done it countless times before the last time."

Hitomi thought about the pictures she had seen of Akira and what her mother had said about her. Her mother thought Akira had been abused because she was so aloof.

"Perhaps we should move on," Dryden suggested, interrupting her thoughts. "You can learn more about your aunt later."

**The Merchant**

"This one is my father's. The Fassas are pure blood all the way and actually so are my mother's people."

Dryden's father's picture was of a stack of golden coins.

"I don't really want to go into detail about him, if you don't mind, but I'll tell you about his abilities. He's dead now, and has been for many years. I inherited my ability from him when I was seven. He had the ability to stockpile money, to arrange amazing business deals and to rake in more cash and keep it; probably more so than any other person who has ever lived. He was cold and warm by turns and always made money with whatever he did."

"So, that's why you're so rich?" Hitomi asked.

"That's why. He really wasn't a very exciting guy. He didn't marry my mother until he was in his sixties, and was an old man when I was born. Anyway, let's move onto my mother."

"Wait! What was his element?"

"Earth – the most useless one," Dryden said condemningly.

**The Wanderer**

Dryden's mother's picture was of a map, and the title was 'The Wanderer'.

"She can't live in one place for longer than a month. I think, sometimes, that she married my father because she knew that he would be able to afford for her to move like she had wheels. She was young when she married my father, so she's not quite fifty, and she still has plenty of energy. I think she's trekking through the Amazon right now, probably looking for a place to rest for the night. She hauled me all over the world with her from the death of my father until I could take it no more and settled down a little. After having spent so much time with her, I can only think of her abilities with gratitude in my heart. Since she's going to live her life the way she is, at least she's equipped for it."

"What do you mean?"

"She has an incredible sense of smell and direction. She's so accurate with the direction thing that she's almost better than a satellite. She also has extreme physical prowess and agility. Meaning of course, that she's ripped to the nines. I would have died at least a hundred times if it hadn't been for her being a Tarot user."

"And her element?"

"Air – the most common one."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but was Akira more powerful than most Tarot users?" Hitomi asked quietly. She didn't want to offend Dryden by implying that her family was stronger, but she was stupid about this, so she had to ask obvious questions.

"Don't be embarrassed," Dryden reassured her. "There's no need to be. Let me explain. There are different levels of power. For instance, if a person's symbol is an inanimate object, then their powers will be lower than someone with a living being as their symbol. A mythical creature is more powerful than a real animal, and a plant is lower than both, but still better than an object. For instance, when my father lay dying my mother locked me in a room full of dolphins. Not real dolphins!" he explained hastily at Hitomi's expression. "But full of pictures and sculptures of dolphins so that I would inherit the dolphin as my symbol. You have to understand; she wanted me to inherit that specific set of abilities. Unfortunately, my father's condition improved and they thought that he wouldn't die, so she let me out of the room. He died quietly one night and when I opened my eyes in the morning the first thing I saw was the red rose on my breakfast tray, hence the rose. My mother was furious, but from my point of view it could have been much worse, so I don't let her complain. Besides, I like the way I am."

"Did you want your symbol to be a dolphin?"

"At the time, I did. You see, my mother and I chose it together. A dolphin would have the symbol of water, a more powerful and unique element. Dolphins also have close ties to the spirit world and especially the underworld, but have an essence of joy equated by only them. They are extremely wise and practically made for dealing with crisis. Perhaps they might even see prophetic visions. Yeah, I wanted it to be my symbol, but try to remember that I was a child. She and I had chosen what we hoped my symbol would be by the time I was five. But, I got the best end of the deal anyway."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," he said, suddenly straightening himself up so he stood a little taller. "Most people with plants as their symbol get earth or air as their element. I was lucky and I got water, so I got what I wanted out of being a dolphin."

"But what can you do with a symbol like water? I understand how fire and air are used but water?"

"On the smaller scale, you'll never go thirsty, and on the larger scale, you can call storms, which, let me tell you, is a lot more than you can do with air, unless you've got an extremely powerful symbol to back you."

"Okay," Hitomi said, understanding what he was talking about a lot more clearly now that he had explained so many people's powers.

"Now, let's go talk about your brother-in-law," Dryden suggested, and they went back to the front of the hall.

**The Sorcerer**

"I'm such a bad boy," Dryden said, sucking in his breath and not sounding the least bit sorry. "But my mother and I have been spying on poor Folken."

"You have?" Hitomi questioned, surprised.

"Don't look so shocked. We all spy on each other a little bit," he winked. "But to be honest, so you don't get freaked out, we knew who you were, but we weren't going to interfere until you were an adult, and then you went missing. We weren't spying on you though. So, I came back here as soon as you turned up again in the papers and arranged to go to your high school."

"So, that's what happened … but what about Van? Have you been watching him? Do you know where he is right now?" Hitomi asked urgently, wondering why it hadn't occurred to her to ask before.

"No, I'm sorry. He dropped off the face of the earth to us when he was eighteen and I have had no idea where he has been since he left home, which was when we were supposed to talk to him, too."

Hitomi scrunched her eyebrows together and managed to take a sip from her drink. "Why does everyone want to wait until I'm an adult before pouncing all this information on me? I could have handled it when I was fifteen and inherited my power from Akira."

"True," Dryden said. "It's just that it's complicated with children who inherit the Tarot from relatives, instead of from their parents. Your family was funny. It was a perfect line of females for over thirty generations. Your people usually married within the Tarot or didn't marry at all, but always through the females did the gift go, until … a guy named Minami inherited the power. The sisterhood was totally smashed. I don't know why but whoever Minami was going to inherit the Tarot from wouldn't help him to adjust, when he was clearly the heir. Then it went back to the female line with Akira, but it was a tragedy for your family."

"Why? It wasn't his fault he was a boy."

"Sometimes, it's hard to explain why Tarot users get so pissed off about things like that, but if they could see you now, I don't think they'd be so angry. Anyway, I'm getting massively off topic. I have to tell you about the things we've seen Folken do. It's out of this world, even from _my_ perspective."

"Go on," Hitomi urged.

"One of his elements is air, obviously, but he has another one – appears to be darkness or night. It's hard to explain unless you've seen him turn day into night, but that's not the real problem. He sings you see, and everything that comes out of his mouth is like a spell. He can make illusions, and in doing so, trick people into doing things they wouldn't normally do. He can make someone look and act like someone else entirely."

"I've seen that!" Hitomi said, thinking of the Vans she had seen at The Voltage Room. It was Folken who made that happen!

Dryden raised his eyes. "You've met Folken?"

"You don't know him? You haven't seen him lately?"

"Should I have?" Dryden asked, looking puzzled.

"He's the Guidance Counselor at our school!" Hitomi blurted.

Dryden barked a laugh. "Oh, so he had the same idea I did, huh? That's hilarious! I had heard some of the girls talking about him, but I hadn't met him myself."

"Was he staying clear of you?"

"I don't know. Maybe. That also explains why you wouldn't take counseling instead of detention."

Hitomi gawked. "How did you know about that?"

Dryden smiled broadly. "Well, I didn't want you to have detention, so I went and talked to the Principal about how you were really a good kid, just messed up, and tried to convince him to let you off. He said he'd think about it. On Tuesday, I went and asked him how it went. He said you turned down counseling and would still have detention, so I toddled in late for my class to get detention with you."

"Really? That explains why he was so pissed about you calling him a bureaucrat," Hitomi laughed.

"Doesn't it?" Dryden said, laughing too, until they were both grabbing their sides in amusement. "Okay, okay, okay," he said wiping a tear of mirth from his eye. "Okay, we've seriously got to move. Okay!" he cleared his throat and looking at her like she was really something adorable. "I really like you, Hitomi. I hope we can be friends even though I can't be your lover."

Hitomi suddenly felt the same way about him, so she hugged him, and she felt like … she had found her long lost brother; someone she had never met but loved instantly. It was really magical. The moment was really special, and Hitomi knew, the way that we just sometimes know things, that she and Dryden really were going to be best friends … possibly for the rest of their lives.

When the moment ended, and after a proper pause as respect for those life altering seconds, Dryden continued. "So, Folken is a master of illusion, and he has a killer singing voice that can be used to convince nearly anyone of anything. He has unusual ties with light and darkness, so it seems that when he's good, he's really good and when he's bad, he's supremely evil. There are rumours that he killed his parents, or had a strong hand in it. I wasn't sure if you'd heard that."

"Van told me," Hitomi admitted.

"Not a lot else has been discovered about him, but it's almost limitless what he can do with his song. So in conclusion, he's very intelligent, and very dangerous. That's about it."

"Is there anything you can tell me about Van's abilities?"

Dryden smiled, "Oh yes."

**Ace of Serpents**

"I said before that mythical creatures tend to be more powerful than real animals, and a dragon is a very powerful symbol. Actually, I lied, I don't have any_ real _information about Van, but I can tell you what our guesses are."

"What do you mean?"

"We can't know what he can do until he actually does it, but because of what other people have had for their symbol and the power they've gotten, then we can make an educated guess. The same goes for you. Okay?"

Hitomi nodded and waited for him to go on.

"It's believed that he probably has all the elemental abilities." Then Dryden proceeded to list them, "Light, darkness, earth, water, ice, fire, air, and lightning. Also, it's expected that he'll probably live far beyond the age of a normal human – probably for four of five hundred years."

Hitomi started at this declaration, "Is that normal?"

"For someone with a symbol as powerful as a dragon? Oh yes. The only thing about it is that Van's power will probably die with him and that he'll never pass it off onto someone else. By the time he dies, his blood will be so diluted that no one will get it and all his descendants will be normal humans. But, normally, Folken's power would go to Van's oldest child. However, since Van is a Tarot, the same rules don't apply. So, unless Folken finds a woman to bind to a contract, the Fanel Tarot line dies with this generation. Van, of course, can have children with you since you're also a Tarot, but … anyway, we'll talk about you when we get to your picture. A dragon is also a symbol for great prosperity. Nothing could really go wrong for him since he got his symbol, so fate is constantly on his side. He's also probably possessing of a great intellect … and that's about it for guesses. After that, it's hard to say."

Hitomi noticed that Dryden didn't know that Van could heal, but she supposed that he could because he was going to live for so long. But what about her? Would she die in sixty years and leave Van alone, to do what? Van obviously didn't know this about himself. If he did, maybe he wouldn't have wanted to marry her, knowing he would outlive her by hundreds of years.

"Can you tell me the 'guesses' surrounding my symbol?" Hitomi asked, quietly. This might be more of a revelation than she was ready for.

**The Sun God**

"Kanzaki," Dryden said quietly as they stepped back towards her portrait. "I don't want to hold out on you. I've been trying to think of how to tell you about yourself, but I haven't exactly been able to think of the words. I don't know how I'd take what I'm about to tell you if I'd been brought up as a normal person. I don't want you to freak out on me."

"Is it that bad?" Her heart was thudding against her rib cage with uncommon force, and her breath was shallow. Her palms were clammy too, but she thought she was ready.

"I wouldn't describe it as bad, but when my mother and I were choosing what symbol we hoped I'd get, you'll notice that we did not choose a mythical creature … or anything else more powerful."

"What do you mean by 'more powerful'?"

"It's just that I didn't want to live for hundreds of years while everyone around me died like some of us do, and I didn't want to be so powerful that I might hurt someone I loved with my talents. Those things have been known to happen, but I guess Van wouldn't have either of those problems with a wife like you. I wanted power at a level that I could manage instead of the other way around."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm sorry to be the one to tell you, Kanzaki. You'll forgive me, won't you? They are just theories after all," he said, looking at her with sorrowful eyes, like he really did feel sorry for what he was about to say.

Hitomi narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

"Maybe we should rest, and I should explain later," he said moving for the door.

Hitomi grabbed his sleeve. "Don't put me off! Van always made me wait for information, and it turns out that he didn't really know anything. He even told me himself that he didn't know a lot and that he was stuck discovering things on his own. He thought that everyone's abilities were elemental and that's all. It's obviously because his abilities run along those lines, but I can't stand to wait any longer for the truth. If you leave this room without telling me the theory or whatever, I'll never forgive you. You will have let me down in the biggest way."

Dryden turned around and straightened his glasses. "I'm glad to hear that. I just wanted to make sure you were prepared."

"I am," she said, bracing herself.

"Then here goes. In our world, there are three symbols that are the most powerful - the sun, the moon and the earth. There has never been a Tarot user who had the symbol of the earth, and you are the first one who has had the symbol of the moon, but there was one who was born who has the symbol of the sun."

"The sun? How did they happen to be looking at the sun?"

"The Sun God was sold into slavery when he was a child. I think he was about eleven or twelve. The texts say that his caravan was traveling in the desert during the hottest part of the day, and he fainted from exhaustion. Needless to say, he was blinded by the sun when he awoke. I must specify though – not sunlight – the actual sun. If sunlight was all it took then most of us would have it as our symbol. They say that from that moment on he stopped aging and remained a child forever."

"What?" Hitomi gasped.

"It's true. This happened around the meridian of time, so he has been alive for around two thousand years."

"Have you ever seen him?"

Dryden shook his head, "No, I haven't, but he's not dead and he pops up from time to time to organize us and set things straight when we've all gone crazy, which happens sometimes. Everyone who's ever seen him says it's weird to be ordered around by a child, and to know that they must obey. Anyway, here's the list of known attributes. He has the power of light, darkness and fire, so almost half of the elements. Fire to a huge extent – he could probably turn any mountain into a volcano. He also takes no injury to his person, so he does not scar. He's also unreasonably cheerful, which is lucky for him, considering that he's going to live forever. He can heal any wound on any person or animal. They say that when he chooses, he looks exactly like an angel, but unlike Akira, he cannot change his age. He is a child forever."

"Wouldn't you recognize him if you saw him, then?"

"Not necessarily. He likes to go undercover and appear as a normal human. However, there are many who believe that he can see into a man's soul, so that would make him good at observing and repairing damage in our clan. It is said that if you were to meet him, he would know your thoughts and the colour of your heart. They say there is no way to hide from him – he knows the truth – no matter how much we would try to lie to him. A little scary, eh?" Dryden said looking at her intently. "In any case," he proceeded more casually. "He's extremely powerful, and we're all very lucky that he's good, but he couldn't be anything else with the sun as his symbol. I don't know what else he can do – probably more. Now, I hope I've done my best to prepare you for your list of attributes. Remember, they are only theories."

**The Goddess of the Moon**

Dryden cleared his throat, "It's said that a person with the moon as their symbol would have the elements of ice, water, and darkness. It's believed that you could be a mirror for any person you have ever seen and be their doppelganger if you chose. Remember that the moon is a symbol that is in direct relation with the sun – so you are naturally of a goodly orientation. That's part of the reason you could be left on your own for so long. It's not like you were going to turn into a monster if you were left alone. Your levels at controlling water would be stronger than anyone's … ever. You could control the tides, but I don't recommend trying it. You could kill a lot of people if you weren't careful. So, don't go experimenting with that – got it?"

Hitomi nodded seriously.

"Dreams … dreams are key with you. You would be able to see visions of all kinds, whether you were awake or asleep."

"I've had one!" Hitomi said, remembering the dream she had of Dilandau and Celena and how it had turned out to be real.

"Good! That's a very good sign that you're coming into your own. I mentioned prophetic visions before, and you should be able to have those too."

"What else?" Hitomi asked excitedly.

"There is one more thing, but you may have already guessed it from what I said about Van and The Sun God," Dryden said, taking off his glasses and looking at her with deep concern.

Then suddenly, out of nowhere, a lump formed in her throat. "The moon doesn't die … does it?"

"No, it doesn't," Dryden said slowly.

Hitomi was trembling. What was he saying?

Dryden let the book in his hands fall to the floor. It landed on the tile with a soft thud. He pulled Hitomi into his arms. She was shaking and she couldn't seem to stop. He rubbed her back with his palm like he was trying to comfort her and then he whispered in her ear, "Hitomi." He had never called her by her first name before. This was the first time. "I have grieved and wrestled with myself over how I would tell you about yourself. I know I should have given you some hint while we were at school, so that you would come here and I would be able to explain things to you, but I couldn't. I'm a coward, and having to be the one to explain this to you has been breaking my heart since I saw you introduce yourself in our homeroom. You are so slight, so like a little girl, that I wanted to hold off as long as possible. I'm sorry. I should just say it. I should just tell you. Please forgive me," he said drawing her head into his chest and holding her closer and more desperately to him than any other person besides Van. Then he opened his mouth and said the words like his mouth was dry as a desert, and the silence in the room was just as deep as if they were standing in the middle of the Sahara. "You are possibly the second most powerful Tarot user who has ever been born. The moon has been lovely since the beginning, and will be lovely until the end of time. I don't know how long I'll live, but as long as I do live, I will help you, to become the Goddess."

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Author's Notes: Thanks to Kaytala for betareading. She's really good at it. And thank you to everyone who's following this story. Thank you for reviews and for visiting my forum. The forum for this chapter is already up. Thanks for your support. Cheers!  



	20. Sister of Night

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Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne or Depeche Mode - alas.

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**Chapter Nineteen**

**Sister of Night**

_Featuring 'Sister of Night' by Depeche Mode_

Hitomi felt comfortable going to sleep in Dryden's mansion. For obvious reasons, he didn't bother her at all anymore. Suddenly, she liked him a great deal and couldn't help but think of him as her only real ally. Now she understood him and she didn't feel like he was going to try to crawl into bed with her. Such a thing would have been impossible after what he said to her.

Besides, Hitomi suspected that the girl in the swimming pool was his real love interest. That woman was amazing. No wonder he never bit when the teenagers at their school hit on him. Why bother when he had a woman like that waiting for him at home?

There was something else about Dryden that Hitomi understood now. He pitied her. Maybe that was the reason for the intense expression on his face that first day in school when she turned around to look at him. From his perspective, living forever was an indescribable burden. He didn't want to live forever. He had even had the opportunity to choose his symbol and neither he nor his mother had wanted him to live forever. He seemed excited to grab life and live it with passion and vigor, but happy to accept death when it came. It would definitely come, he had said.

Dryden had given Hitomi some time to wander around in the gallery by herself that evening – presumably while he spent a few minutes with his 'lady friend'. She looked at the pictures. Dryden wasn't deceiving her – this was the truth. Hitomi knew it in her bones. These were her people and this was her real home.

She tried to look at the pictures and decide what the different people's lives had been like when she saw something that caught her eye. There was one picture that was covered. Hitomi thought that it was bad to snoop, and she tried to ignore it as she walked around struggling to accept her new destiny, but she couldn't stop looking at it. There were lots of other pictures to look at, she told herself repeatedly, but her eyes kept being drawn back to that covered frame.

At last, she gave into temptation and had a look under the certain. The painting was dark and rough - like a Van Gogh. But the image burned into Hitomi's brain – it was of a pitchfork. The caption under it read 'The Devil'.

She heard Dryden at the door and speedily dropped the sheet covering it. When he came in, she asked him what it was.

He shook his head. "I don't think you're ready to hear that story yet. Maybe a little later on," he suggested.

Hitomi moved away and pretended that she hadn't peeked.

"Are you feeling okay, now?" he asked gently.

"I think so … I've just been thinking …"

"Understandable."

"I've just been thinking that I should tell you about Folken," Hitomi said, mentally drawing Dryden into her space. Now she was ready to confide in him.

"Okay. Tell me."

"Yesterday, I went out for breakfast with Folken, and he asked me if I would consider …" she was choking on the words. Saying this out loud was nearly impossible. "He wants me to become his … his …"

"Contract bound woman," Dryden finished. "Yeah, that doesn't surprise me. You seemed to be keeping it a secret that you and Van were married, so it doesn't surprise me that he asked you. He hasn't got many options. He's over thirty, so he's probably thinking about getting serious with a woman now, whereas it wouldn't have mattered to him at all five years ago. What did you tell him?"

"I didn't tell him anything. He wants me to give him an answer by the end of this week."

"That's not a lot of time. What do you plan to do?"

"I don't know. I'm worried that if I confess that I'm married to Van, then he'll kill Van to make me available for him," Hitomi admitted painfully.

Dryden shook his head, "I'd be lying if I said that I didn't think that was definitely a possibility. The Dragon is strong, but it's possible for him to be killed."

"I thought I should maybe go along with Folken a little bit until I found out what has happened to Van. What do you think of that idea?"

"Out of the question!" Dryden shouted, quite suddenly. "There is NO WAY you should do that. I won't support you in that at all – you are Van's wife – W-I-F-E!"

"Don't get so mad! I wouldn't sleep with him or anything," Hitomi exclaimed, defending herself.

"Van explained contracts to you, right?" Dryden said, hardly becoming less heated. "I was certain he at least understood that much from his aunt if he knew to get a tattoo."

"No," Hitomi said, shaking her head.

"Okay, I'll try to calm down then. Let's get out of here. The air is stale."

From there, Dryden took her into a personal sitting room with a fireplace crackling and a bearskin rug on the floor. His lady friend was curled up in an armchair by the flames and she had a book laid down on her lap even though she was obviously asleep.

Dryden kissed her forehead and carried her away to bed before he came back to talk to Hitomi.

"There are two different kinds of agreements that Tarot users enter into," he said, sitting down on the couch beside her. "One is marriage, and that's just the same as it is in the real world with all the same privileges and set backs. So, I'm not going to explain that. But let's say you're married to so-and-so, and you have two kids, can't stand each other and get divorced. Now, because you were married to a Tarot user to begin with and you had children together, then you are FORBIDDEN to ever sleep with another Tarot user – EVER!"

"Why?"

"We don't want to be inbred, and if there are birth secrets among us then couples could get together later on and not know that they are really half brother and sister – disgusting! It's not a joke and it's punishable by death. Especially since there is no reason for any of us to go without if we don't want to since we're sterile if we sleep with an ordinary human. And there is another problem."

"What's that?" Hitomi asked.

"Sometimes we have cousins who are Tarot users. So, sometimes it happens that people marry their first cousin, but that's allowed and it's usually intentional. It's because if Akira had had children with Folken, say, then you would still have the Tarot abilities and so would at least one of the children they had together. Then you'd have cousins who were also Tarot users. Make sense?"

This part did make sense to Hitomi, and she nodded.

"I have some cousins on my mother's side," he said, almost shuttering. "Not first cousins, but both of them want to marry me and I …" Here he cut himself off. "Anyway, on with another one of my tireless explanations. Sometimes couples get together solely for the opportunity to reproduce – like my parents. They actually did get married, but some don't choose to do it that way. Sometimes, they just enter into a contract to be the reproductive partner and they both have human relationships outside of their Tarot deal. Personally, I think that's deliberately foolish and debilitating. I don't know how you could have a good relationship with _anyone_ when you're intentionally unfaithful. You couldn't have a good relationship with a human partner because you're running off to try to get pregnant or get someone else pregnant with your child. So, you couldn't stay close to your human lover, and you are obviously only sleeping with your Tarot lover for the sake of reproduction, otherwise you'd be married to them. It's irritating for me to even think about it."

"Is _she_ a Tarot user?" Hitomi couldn't help asking.

"Selphie? No, but that doesn't matter to me. I'm The Lover, after all."

"And that makes you special, somehow?"

"It might be nothing, but my mother thinks that I don't need a Tarot wife to be able to produce Tarot children. That's what she thinks, and I believe her. It's yet to be tried, though," he said with a wink. "Anyway, Selphie hasn't agreed to marry me. She likes playing hard to get and I like chasing after her, so we please each other that way."

"I wouldn't have thought that you would want to get married," Hitomi said, thinking of how sorely she had misjudged him on their first meeting.

"Of course I do – probably more than anyone who's ever lived. I'm such a slave to passion. It's a horrible burden to be me, you know. Anyway, it doesn't matter which way I look at it. You can't even pretend to Folken that you're available. As a matter of fact, I think we should go straighten it out as soon as possible."

"The only thing is that he knows where Van is. I want Van back! He can't be staying with Folken and Dilandau because he wants to. There has to be some other reason that I don't know, and if I come right out and say that Van is my husband then will Folken kill him?"

Dryden rubbed the back of his neck. "We're totally nailed, then. I don't know what to do."

"Van wanted me to finish high school though, so I guess I'll have to go back at some point, and when I do, Folken will be waiting for me."

"Finish high school? What for? I didn't even go to school!"

"But you seem smart, who taught you?"

"My mother and father directly. He had me perched on his sickbed while he explained accounting theories to me when I was old enough to hold a pencil in my hand. And believe me, the education my mother gave me on the road is far more advanced than what you'd receive at fetching Lord Grava Asturia High."

"But what about me? My parents weren't Tarot users, and they don't even like me very much right now."

"Doesn't matter. You were half a semester off graduating. I'm satisfied that you're smart enough, and besides, you'll have a million opportunities for learning in your life. Unless you particularly want the high school experience that's available right now."

"But I'll be old later, and I won't be able to go back to high school in a hundred years!"

"Why not?"

"I'll be … old … wrinkly."

Dryden raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her. "Hitomi," he asked. "How much do you weigh?"

"Fifty two kilograms," she answered, not even thinking of the female ramifications of admitting one's weight.

"And how much did you weigh when you were fifteen? The year you received your symbol?"

"Fifty two kilograms."

"Okay, so your weight hasn't changed since you received your symbol? Has your height? Have any of your measurements? I might be wrong, but I thought I made it clear. I think you're going to look like a fifteen year old until the world crumbles under your feet," he said, still exuding that aura that he felt regretful about the way her life was going to go, and that he felt sick that he had to talk to her about it again.

Hitomi felt like she should have been happy that she was at least going to be young, but instead she just felt sort of empty.

"Be happy. At least you got to be old enough that you'll be able to pass for an adult. Maybe that was what Akira was waiting for."

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing," Dryden said, getting up from the couch. "I've said enough things to disturb you for one day. Let me take you to your room. Maybe we'll be able to think of a way to get Van back in the morning."

Dryden said he didn't want to traumatize her, but Hitomi understood what he meant. He meant that Akira had waited until Hitomi was grown up before she allowed herself to die. Akira had probably wanted to die for years, but not done it because she didn't want to risk giving the abilities of a Tarot user to a child. Hitomi wondered what drew her aunt into the world of ghosts so strongly. What?

Dryden walked Hitomi to her room and gave her a brotherly hug before he said good night to her. Before he turned away, he reminded Hitomi that if she needed anything in the night, she was welcome to wake him up. He pointed to the door of his room and closed her door for her.

She tried to go to sleep between the white sheets, but it was hard. She kept waking up trembling … she couldn't stop the nightmares. She thought she was dealing with all this new information so well, but she knew she wasn't when she got up to get a glass of water for a third time. She was staring at her reflection in the mirror wondering if she really hadn't changed since she was fifteen. The bed was so big and empty … was it so wrong that she wanted someone to hold her that night or all nights? How long was she going to have to live without Van? She felt like she couldn't handle this at three a.m. without him to calm her.

"Van," she whispered, as she sat on the edge of the tub in the bathroom. "Where are you?"

In the morning, Hitomi pulled her school uniform on. Her thoughts weren't clear, but she decided to let Folken know that a relationship wasn't possible, and she might as well do so now rather than later. She would tell him … well, she'd tell him a lot of things. He was trying to get her because she was powerful and he wanted an heir – how disgusting!

Breakfast was served in her bedroom. She was told that Dryden had left ahead of her and would meet her at school. Apparently, he had some reason for going early. Hitomi was told that there was a chauffeur who would drive her when she was ready.

It was a little weird arriving at school in an SUV driven by Dryden's private chauffeur, especially when he parked alongside her father who was dropping Marlene off. Hitomi sat in the backseat, and the chauffeur came out and opened the door for her. Here he tipped his cap at her and informed her that Dryden would bring her back to the mansion himself.

Hitomi looked over at her father. He hadn't rolled down his window or anything to talk to Hitomi and was instead looking ahead of him very icily. Marlene didn't stop to talk either and hurried past Hitomi after she had looked for long enough at Hitomi and her escort to misinterpret the situation. From their point of view, it probably appeared all wrong. Hitomi couldn't and wouldn't explain the truth to them. So, she slammed both of them out of her mind. There was nothing she could do about it now, and what was worse, she didn't want to make up with them. She wanted the freedom to do whatever she needed to do to get Van back. He was where her heart really lay, not with her family who didn't need her or want her, and she was going to get him back.

So, she plunged into the snow and stamped her way up the main entrance. She had already decided that today was the last day she would be attending Lord Grava Asturia High and she'd better make good friggin' use out of it. There were a couple of things she needed to do. She needed to tell Folken off and then she needed to talk to the gym coach about Yukari. She had to convince her that she'd deceived Yukari and that Yukari was really a good girl and deserved to be the track team manager. Then she could walk away without regrets.

When she came through the doors, she saw the two men who'd been on her mind lately. There was Dryden, standing by the boot racks with three girls swarming him, and there was Folken. He was leaning against the wall with a grouchy expression on his face. It appeared that he was waiting for her to come through the entrance.

Dryden shook off the girls surrounding him with his careful charisma, and came over to Hitomi as soon as she came in.

"Good morning," he said, looking for just one second at Folken. "I guess that's him," he said, whispering. "We should talk more before you confront him – don't you think?"

"No Dryden," Hitomi said, thinking of her decision. She didn't want to go back on it. "But I wanted to ask you one question."

"Ask anything," he said, pushing his wavy hair out of his face.

"Your tattoo," she started, getting a wicked little smile, because she knew Folken was watching and he wouldn't like her cuddling up to Dryden. "Where is it?"

Dryden arched an eyebrow in surprise and rose to the challenge. "Well," he said, quite literally maneuvering Hitomi into a corner and standing really close to her. "Are you sure you want to know?"

Hitomi was laughing. She couldn't help it. Now that she knew what Dryden was and she knew this was just his way, he suddenly became an extremely fun person to be around. His flirting was, well, invigorating. He was touching her chin and drawing her eyes up to meet his in the most dramatic way, but only when she nodded in answer to his question did he lower his lips to her ear and whisper the answer to her.

Hitomi flushed. He would have it on his rear!

"Hey! You two!" Folken suddenly interrupted, just like Hitomi thought he would if she let Dryden into her space. "No P.D.A.s in the hallway!"

Dryden broke away from her like he was being parted from his long lost love and said with a dirty wink, "I'll see you in class, Kanzaki." Then he looked at Folken, as if to dare him to take the matter any further with him, and headed towards his locker.

Folken let him go and said to Hitomi, "Miss Kanzaki, I'd like to see you in my office."

"What about Dryden? He was being just as bad as me!" she exerted.

"I'll talk to him later," he said, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her down the hall like she was a delinquent. He was obviously going too far, but no one said anything about his treatment of her.

Hitomi gritted her teeth and prepared herself for what would come. This wasn't going to be easy. She just had to keep her head around her; remember that Van was her goal, and keep cool.

At last, he tossed her down in a chair in his office, and then he proceeded to shut and lock his office door.

"You are going to drive me insane! What do you want with that idiot Fassa kid? And I thought you were trying to stay out of trouble at school because of your parents? I wouldn't have been the only teacher to call you on that," Folken exclaimed angrily before throwing himself into his chair.

"I'm not living with my parents anymore. They kicked me out. So, there's no reason for me to behave while I'm here anymore. At least I don't have to be a good girl for them. I've gone from straight-laced to unprincipled in twenty-four hours. So, don't lecture me, please," Hitomi said, looking at the ceiling in his office, again like she was a rebellious teenager.

"Oh really?" Folked asked slowly, like he didn't expect an answer. Then he touched his shin with his fingertips. He was thinking. "Likewise, then there's no reason for us not to accelerate the progression of 'our' relationship."

'Our' relationship? Hitomi hadn't realized that living with her parents would be preventing Folken from moving in on her. She hadn't even clued in that her father watching her like a hawk might be keeping unwanted male attention away. Folken suggested before that they move slowly in their relationship. It was because he didn't want to meddle with her parents! Her breath caught in her throat. What had she gotten herself into?

"What do you mean?" she asked, abruptly feeling sick to her stomach.

"If you're unprincipled now, then you shouldn't have a hard time moving in with me. I'm very rich and I'll teach you everything there is to know about your gift. I'll take care of you," he said, peering into her eyes carefully, like what he was saying was an extremely deep sort of promise. "In short, I'll make you extremely happy."

"How could you make me happy?" she asked dryly. She was choking on her words.

Then he started to sing. Dryden had warned her about his song, and Hitomi had heeded that warning. She knew she shouldn't be near him when he sang, but she wasn't able to move as he started the opening words. It was like everything he said before hand tied her to the chair and made her incapable of getting up and out of the room.

_Sister of nights  
When the hunger descends_

He got up from his chair and came around the desk to stand in front of her. Hitomi didn't like him so close to her. She didn't like the way his eyes evaluated her.

_  
And your body's a fire  
An inferno that never ends_

His hands were a little cold as he bent to take one of her hands in his. Her breath was becoming shallow. It shouldn't be. She shouldn't be reacting like this to him … it wasn't right.

_  
An eternal flame  
That burns in desire's name  
_

He put the palm of her hand to his lips, and kissed her skin slowly – lingeringly. His eyes were closed, and then he started to sing again.

_  
Sister of night  
When the longing returns  
Giving voice to the flame  
Calling you through flesh that burns_

Here he kissed her wrist. His voice was so smooth and deep and … inviting. The muscles in her neck were relaxing and she was feeling warmer, something inside her body was heating her. Hitomi no longer wanted to bolt for the door. She was only mildly uncomfortable as he sang on.

_  
Breaking down your will  
To move in for the kill  
_

His eyes snapped open and they looked red and intense as he continued. He let go of her wrist and suddenly unzipped the zipper on her winter coat. It was a quick motion and it made a sound like a ripcord, yet it fit perfectly in with his song. He slid his hands under her coat and around her waist. He pulled her into his arms like she was a rag doll; her limbs felt heavy and she was just as limp. She didn't know how it happened, but her coat was pushed from off her shoulders and it fell onto the floor. He let her fall across his thighs as he took her chair and held her close to him. She felt like she was supposed to be there.

_  
Oh sister  
Come for me  
Embrace me  
Assure me  
Hey sister  
I feel it too  
_

His voice was so deep and mellow when he sang, and she was using what strength she had to raise her head to meet his eyes … almost desperately. As he sang, he sounded so miserable, so wronged. She wanted to comfort him. He was suffering. But she didn't know what to do.

_Sweet sister  
Just feel me  
I'm trembling  
You heal me  
Hey sister  
I feel it too  
_

Hitomi wasn't trying to pull away. She had stopped even thinking about turning away from him, but she knew that she shouldn't be putting her fingers in his hair, yet she was. She shouldn't be looking into his face like he was hers to soothe. Something was wrong, but she could no longer remember what it was. And even worse, with one more word, she wouldn't care.

_  
Sister of night  
In your saddest dress  
As you walk through the light  
You're desperate to impress  
So you slide to the floor  
Feeling insecure  
_

He undid the top button on her school uniform. Hitomi was glad. Her collar was choking her, and it was like he opened her throat up. Now she was able to breathe.

He ran his hand down the side of her arm, the arm that had her tattoo on it, and gently started to rub it with his fingertips. What was he doing? It was like he was trying to erase something.

_  
Sister of night  
With the loneliest eyes  
Tell yourself it's alright  
He'll make such a perfect prize  
But the cold light of day  
Will give the game away  
_

Finally, he stopped touching her arm, and his hand worked its way up past her shoulder to her neck. His hand was caressing the side of her face with his soft long fingers. He was drawing her close to him. Their breath was mingling, and she liked the way he smelled – like cologne off a perfume sample. Why hadn't she noticed how good he smelled before?

_  
Oh sister  
Come for me  
Embrace me  
Assure me  
Hey sister  
I feel it too_

Her eyes fell closed and she listened to his perfect voice, and felt the warmth of his breath, and felt the closeness of his body, and the tensing of his muscles, and completely lost herself in him.

_  
Sweet sister  
Just feel me  
I'm trembling  
You heal me  
Hey sister  
I feel it too_

He bent down to bring their breath and their lips together.

* * *

Author's Notes: I'm not quite used to my laptop keyboard yet, so if there is a weird error in there that makes no sense, it's because I'm not slick. Kaytala and I have checked it, but I'm not sure if we got everything. So, if there is a mistake, my sincerely apologies. 

Thanks everyone for reviewing last time. It was really cool. Thanks everyone for taking the time to read my story. Thanks to Kaytala for beta reading. I really appreciate her hard work. You guys ROCK!

My forum is up and going for chapter 19, so go have a look there if you're interested. We'll talk about how I managed to make Folken taking Hitomi's coat off sound skanky. It's still a mystery to me.


	21. Broken Spell

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne - I also sorta scam some 'Blue Eyes' lyrics off the Escaflowne soundtrack in this chapter. It's my favourite line from the song.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty**

**Broken Spell**

_"Hitomi, will you promise me something?"_

_What?_

_"Will you promise me that you won't tell anyone that we're married?"_

_Who are you? Why are you talking to me?_

_"All the same reasons still exist why we couldn't tell anyone before. Please promise you won't tell anyone unless it's life or death. I don't want to risk your safety. Please promise me."_

"VAN!" Hitomi suddenly shouted. It was Van who had said those words to her! And now suddenly she recalled them so vividly that he might as well have repeated them into her ear.

"Hitomi?" the real man in front of her whispered in a concerned tone.

She opened her eyes and saw Folken so close to her face that she immediately threw her head back in shock. What the heck? Hitomi was in his lap! She jumped up when she realized that she was just about to kiss him. Her foot got stuck in the sleeve of her coat (it was still on the floor) and as she was frantically trying to get away from Folken, she lost her balance on the material and fell. After landing smack on her butt and barely saving herself from giving Folken a view of her underpants, she stood up with a jolt. She was brushing off her clothes with her hands. He had touched her! She felt so dirty. Touched her? Folken had been all over her – how absolutely icky!

Folken looked disgusted himself as he said, "You didn't seem to mind me so much a second ago."

"You bastard!" Hitomi rasped. She felt seriously infringed upon – like he'd tried to rape her.

"Don't you dare yell at me!" he retorted, getting up from the chair and towering over her. He really was much taller than she was. "I stopped singing before I really made a move and I let you have the choice."

"Like hell you did!"

He scoffed. "You wouldn't know the difference between me using my powers and me only leaving you with my influence, now would you? You don't know the first thing about our abilities, but," he said, his voice calming down, like he was now able to speak rationally. "I think from that little moment, I showed you that you could very easily be in love with me."

"If you slept with me …" Hitomi wanted to finish the sentence by saying, "They'd frickin' kill you," because she had a contract with Van. Instead, she took a deep breath to relax herself. Then she amended it and went back to her original plan. "I just wanted to come here to tell you that you have nothing to offer me and that I've decided against giving you a chance."

"You came to that conclusion quickly," he said, looking at the pendant around her neck. "You aren't still thinking of Van, are you?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, your tattoo had his symbol incorporated in it. You're obviously in love with him, but does he love you back?"

"He does!"

Folken shrugged his shoulders like he didn't believe her. "Whatever you say."

"You don't think so?"

"No," he said, sitting back at his desk and taking out some folders like he really was a guidance counselor and that he was getting to work.

She crushed her sweaty palms together. "Just tell me where Van is, and I'll promptly get out of your sight."

Folken sat back in his chair with a satisfied look on his face. "And that is exactly why Van isn't really in love with you. You should give up on him and go for me. I really would make you happy, and not just in bed. But if it's Van you really want then I can make it so you won't know the difference between him and me if that's what turns you on. It makes no difference to me."

Scarlet broke out on Hitomi's cheeks, but she managed to stutter, "If you really cared about me, then that _would _make a difference to you."

"It's just like I told you. I'm not in love with you, but I am willing to go all out to make you happy – Van obviously isn't willing to go that far, regardless of what he said to you."

"You know, you still haven't been able to convince me that Van came with you freely. I think you blackmailed him into staying with you. I don't know why you want him, but I know that he wouldn't have come to a peaceable agreement with you unless you put something on the table he wasn't willing to sacrifice – like Allen and those other guys who you brainwashed. I'll bet he still hasn't forgiven you."

"Fine," Folken said, looking at Hitomi more seriously. "Here's the truth – but before I tell you, I have to point something out. Van can't possibly love you back the way you want – on your body the dragon and the moon were always together and on Van's, they are always apart. So, I'll tell you what has happened, and when you're through licking your wounds over my stupid little brother, you'll come back here, and I'll take care of you properly."

Hitomi wanted to tell him off, but didn't want to interrupt him, just in case he was really going to admit something real.

"Van broke out of our facility last Monday. I had to leave here that day because I had to go make sure that 'certain things' were removed from the site before it went down in flames. If I'd made it there two minutes earlier, I might have been able to stop Van from leaving, but since you held me back here with your 'I've got a cut on my ear so please take care of me' routine, I couldn't make it on time."

"WHAT?"

"It's true," Folken said in a deep voice. "It took me awhile to straighten everything out, which is why I was gone the rest of the week. Van's a pain in the ass, but it appears that he didn't come running home to you since you're still looking for him. Don't you think you should take that as a hint that he doesn't really care and reconsider giving me a chance?"

Hitomi swallowed. If Van had been let out … he really hadn't come after her! Hitomi scooped her coat off the floor and turned around to grab the door, "I've got to go." She turned the handle, but it didn't budge.

"Didn't you see me lock that door?" Folken said, coming up behind her and putting his arms on either side of her as he put his fingers around the bolt. "I don't mind if you go running after Van, just make sure to come back here when you're through putting that idiot first." Then he undid the lock and let Hitomi into the hallway. He closed the door behind her and Hitomi was left standing, very shaken in the middle of the empty corridor.

* * *

Hitomi wandered down the hall towards the gym coach's office. What was she going to do? She didn't know what to do about Van. If he had managed to free himself, where had he gone and where should she go to find him? Was he being chased? Could she really go after him? Maybe there was a reason why he wouldn't want her to go after him. There were so many possibilities.

She was miserable, but she had to fulfill her promise to herself to get Yukari off the hook. The coach's door was right beside the gym entrance and it was open. Hitomi thought that maybe the coach wouldn't be there for some reason, but she was there working on her computer.

"Hi," Hitomi said, knocking lightly on the doorframe and trying her best to appear humble. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Only if it's just a minute," the woman said testily. She really didn't seem to like Hitomi one bit.  
Hitomi came in, but even though there were chairs for students, she didn't sit down on them. "It was my fault about the keys to the weight room. Please don't punish Yukari because of me. She lent them to me because I begged her …"

"Oh? Is that all you're here for?" she interrupted. "Well, if that's it, you can leave right now."

"Won't you please listen to what I have to say?" Hitomi appealed, quite desperately.

"No. There's no need. Dryden was in here this morning to talk to me about it. I wish I could, but I just can't say 'no' to that guy. I didn't realize you and he were such good friends. I've decided to let Yukari remain the track team manager, but you're off the team, for good."

"That's fine!" Hitomi beamed. "Thank you so much for forgiving Yukari. Thank you! Thank you!" Hitomi turned to leave.

"Isn't there something else you'd like to say to me?" the teacher asked, looking interested.

Hitomi turned around. She was confused. "Should I be apologizing?"

"Maybe."

She bowed. "I'm very sorry for all the trouble I've caused you."

"But you still don't want to be on the team?"

Hitomi gave the teacher a half smile, "I never wanted to come to this school. I tried to make the best of it, but I should have never come back to my old life. It was a mistake. I'm not bitter or anything and I'm not even rebellious in my heart. I just have something important that I need to do."

Oddly enough, the teacher smiled, "Then I guess you'd better go do it."

These were the first words of encouragement Hitomi had heard from anyone in such a long time. Dryden had been wonderful, but it was a lot different coming from a person who was completely entitled to think poorly of her, and the gym coach's words did more to inspire Hitomi than she could have possibly imagined. Her run in with Folken had freaked her out more than she had admitted, even to herself. The fact that he could exhibit so much power and that she was helpless … it disheartened her. But seeing the fighting expression on that woman's face lit Hitomi's engines and suddenly she felt like she could do it. She even knew how to go about looking for Van. She'd go back to Aunt Flo's … nothing worse could happen than have the old bat slam the door in her face, and that wouldn't be hard to bear, not with her new free spirit. She'd find Van! She'd find him somewhere!

"Thank you!" Hitomi said again, resisting the urge to hug her. Then she hurried down the hallway to her homeroom class. "Might as well go out with a bang," Hitomi thought as she swung the door open noisily.

Everyone in the class looked up at her expectantly.

"Dryden, we're leaving! Get your stuff!" she cried loudly, interrupting the class.

"All right!" he said, getting up. "Time to get a little rowdy?"

"Way past time!"

Dryden picked up his bag and headed for the door.

"But wait!" their homeroom teacher exclaimed. "You can't just walk out of class in the middle of a lesson! What about your grades? What about graduating?"

"Do you care?" Dryden asked Hitomi, suddenly serious.

Hitomi tilted her hand back and forth as if she were trying to make up her mind. "Not really."

Dryden turned back and said to the teacher, "She doesn't care."

The woman looked hurt at being so obviously bypassed, but she went on to ask Dryden specifically, "But you care about graduation, don't you?"

Dryden was incapable of being rude to a woman who made such a gentle appeal to him, but that didn't change that Hitomi thought that what he did next was completely uncalled for.

"Well, I am about to be expelled," he said.

"What for?" she asked, surprised.

"This," he said as he pulled the teacher into an extremely passionate embrace and continued kissing her quite steadily for a solid thirty seconds. Hitomi didn't mean to time him, but there was that massive white clock at the end of the room. Some of the girls were looking on like they were so jealous that they would burst and the boys were wailing for him to get off her, but none of them actually made a move to separate them. Dryden was such a man-whore!

"Yo! Dryden! We've got to go! I've got a job for us to do!" Hitomi shouted at him after the thirty seconds had expired.

He let the teacher go and kissed her hand warmly. "Good bye. I don't know if I'll be able to come back now." Then he followed Hitomi out the door.

Hitomi didn't linger to see what happened in the classroom, but she didn't miss the steamy crimson on the teacher's cheeks and the smoke that was practically coming from her ears.

"You shouldn't have done that," Hitomi said as they proceeded down the hallway to get their coats and empty their lockers. "Weren't you going to continue posing as a student? What about your alias?"

"I thought I'd stop coming after today, and since you just said that you didn't care about graduation then there is definitely no reason to keep up the pretense. Besides, I have other things to do. My business and my real life can't be put on hold any longer, so unless you really needed me to come for some reason, I wasn't going to come back after today anyway."

"But now she'll never be satisfied by another man," Hitomi balked.

"Ah, ah, ah. On the contrary, I've taught her how to kiss properly. All the relationships she'll have in the future will be better because she'll remember the proper way to love somebody."

"I guess if you want to look at it that way."

* * *

Once in Dryden's SUV, he asked her, "Where are we going?'

"We're going to Van's Aunt Flo's house. Folken told me that Van escaped from their hideout; I think he used the word 'facility', a week ago. Apparently, Van torched the building. I don't know if he'd go home to his aunt, but she might have an idea where he's gone."

"You've been there before?"

"Yeah, I know the way," Hitomi said as she started giving him directions on how to get out of town.

The snow wasn't deep yet, but little snowflakes were falling down around the vehicle and brushing against the windshield as they drove. It took awhile to ride out to the farm. For some reason Hitomi couldn't stand the silence, so she asked Dryden, "Won't your girlfriend be mad that you kissed someone else?"

"Selphie? You could tell her about it if you wanted to. I'm not sure how she'd react. It would be interesting to find out how she'd take something like that, but good luck telling her," Dryden said confidently.

"You don't think she'd believe me? She thinks you're _that_ great, huh?"

"It's not that," Dryden reassured her. "Selphie only speaks Italian. She's only just begun to learn English. Yet another reason why she's not enjoying herself here – there's no one for her to talk to, besides me. Don't get me wrong. She wouldn't be here at all if she didn't care something for me, but I've been gone a lot of the time pretending to be a teenager."

"So, you knew that you weren't going to have much time to spare to be with her and you still invited her to come?"

"Don't make me sound so heartless. I gave her the choice. She could come here with me to be bored out of her mind and neglected, or she could stay in Europe and swim in the Mediterranean everyday if she wanted. I was surprised, too, that she decided to come with me."

"Are you really? You seem like you expected it. Does she know about you being _different_ from ordinary people?"

Dryden shrugged and changed lanes. "I think she knows that there's something different about me, but I'm not sure if she knows what the exact difference is."

"Hmm …" Hitomi said, taking more notice of the road. Her heart was beating much faster. She could see the farm from here, and even though Dryden had been speeding, she didn't think he was going near fast enough.

He took the turnoff she indicated, and Hitomi leapt out of the door to open the gate that would lead them onto the actual driveway.

Dryden got out of the SUV with Hitomi and walked up the steps onto the veranda with her. Hitomi rang the doorbell.

Then she heard a voice, undoubtedly Van's, shouting, "If that's Merle, tell her to go home. I said I don't want to see her and I mean it."

Hitomi's heart leapt up into her throat.

Aunt Flo opened the door, and when she saw Hitomi standing there, she immediately moved to slam it again. Hitomi was ready for something like this and she stuffed her foot in the door jam. "Van!" she called into the house.

He called back to her, "Hitomi!"

"Van!" Then to Aunt Flo, "Let me in!" In another second, Hitomi was ready to body chuck his precious little aunt smack into the wall.

"Hitomi!" Van yelled again.

When Van called her name for the second time, Aunt Flo let the door go slack, so that Hitomi and Dryden could come in. She wore a look of sickened resignation. It was absolute rudeness that she wanted to keep Hitomi from seeing Van.

Hitomi whipped off her wet boots and chased through the house looking for him. She didn't have to go far when she found him in the dinning room, and what she saw was enough to make a squeamish person faint.

Van was sitting backwards on a chair, his shirt was off, and he was leaning forward. There were two long gashes down his back. They were long and ran on either side of his spine for at least twenty-five centimeters. One came so close the crescent moon on his shoulder blade that it almost broke the image. The doctor was bent over him, stitching them up. Van's eyes looked huge and very dark. He had black circles under them as though he hadn't slept in weeks. His skin was pasty white, even through his tan, but Hitomi was having a hard time not staring at the blood that was still seeping from the unstitched portion of his wound.

"Hitomi," he said quietly, drawing her attention back to his face.

She was so relieved at the mere sight of him that she took his face in her hands and kissed him on the forehead. She would have liked to kiss him better, but she didn't like to because his aunt was watching and he looked so messed up. He probably couldn't take anything more than that. His brow was damp with sweat. Hitomi didn't know if the doctor had given him anything for the pain. "Van, what's happened to you?"

"Nothing much. My brother's working for The Devil," Van said, wincing.

"Mother of …" Dryden gaped, not just at Van's injuries, but also at what he said. The expression on his face was one of absolute horror.  
Hitomi remembered the picture in the gallery that was hidden under the sheet. It had been of a pitchfork and the caption had the letters, 'The Devil'. That had to be one terrifying Tarot user.

"Who's this guy?" Van asked, noticing Dryden for the first time.

"He's my friend," Hitomi said, not wanting to use his name. She was thinking hard about what they could do from this point, and she didn't want to mess it up by using Dryden's real name.

"How many more stitches now?" Van asked the doctor.

The doctor grimaced, "I'm not sure. I'm almost done."

"Van, what happened to you?" Hitomi repeated, unsatisfied with his answer.

"It doesn't look like an ordinary injury to you?" he asked, wiping his sweaty forehead with his wrist.

"Hold still," the doctor reprimanded.

"Damn … sorry," Van said.

Dryden grabbed Hitomi's sleeve and pulled her a safe distance away from the others. "Listen Hitomi, I don't know what's happened here, but one thing is for sure. He can't stay here and neither can you. I know it's natural to want to stay with your husband and with his family, but this is a Tarot matter. Neither his aunt nor the doctor who's treating him should be involved. Do you think you can convince him to come with us back to my mansion?"

Hitomi nodded. She agreed with Dryden completely. There was no way Van should stay here any longer. They had to get him out of here and find out everything that had happened. Hitomi decided that it was not necessary for him to explain what happened after The Voltage Room right now. Van might not want to explain in front of his aunt or the doctor himself. He said that he didn't want to involve other people in his fight, so he would want to come … hopefully.

"I'll try," Hitomi said, turning back to Van and the doctor. She didn't know how to go about this, but she had to give it a shot. "Van, are you hurt anywhere else? Is it only your back that's hurt?"

"Yeah, just my back … is that all you have to say to me?" he asked, taking another look at Dryden.

_What was he thinking?_ She'd worry about that question later. It would probably be awhile before they got everything straightened out. "Van," she said aloud. "I don't think you should stay here. Would it be okay if we packed up your things and you came away with us?"

"Where would we go?" he asked drearily.

"You look terrible … I'll nurse you better … and I …" Here Hitomi paused and looked at his aunt. She was about to tell Van how much she missed him and how grateful she was that he hadn't died – that he was all right. But she didn't like to say anything that would be an admission of feeling in case he still wanted to keep their marriage a secret. Tears were welling up in her eyes now that the shock of the sight of his red blood was gone. She grabbed his hands in hers and kissed them. "Please don't stay here. Please come away with me. I'll take care of you. I'll wait on you night and day if you need it. Whatever you need …"

Aunt Flo grabbed Hitomi's shoulders and pulled her away from Van. "You're making a fool of yourself," she said severely. "You think he hasn't been put through enough? He doesn't need you crying over him. That's why he didn't want Merle to come. Pull yourself together or I'll throw you out, too."

"Flo, please don't touch her," Van said softly. "I've been breaking my neck to be strong for months, and even when I got here, I still felt like I had to be strong. I didn't want Merle's pity or yours, but … I want Hitomi's. Please don't send her away."

Hitomi brought her eyes up to meet Van's. His eyes looked so tired, and absolutely tormented, but something about him … _everything_ about him was a miracle. It was a miracle that her love for him was as strong as it had been before he went away – and his love for her too. It hadn't died.

"I'll go with you. You can go get my stuff together if you want. I'll come as soon as he's finished bandaging me. Then I'll go anywhere you want me to, Hitomi. I would love to just drop myself into your care … and break down … just this once."

Sometime during Van's speech Aunt Flo had let go of Hitomi and was standing dumbfounded. She didn't understand what was happening, but Dryden filled the breech. He put his hand on her shoulder and said in a paced rational tone (the kind of voice a doctor uses to subdue a hysterical patient), "Let's leave them alone. Would you be good enough to show me to Van's room? You could help me choose his clothes."

Aunt Flo looked up at Dryden, and Hitomi had never seen her look at anyone like that. She reprimanded Van, even when he had been shot, and he was the only person who she seemed to like. When she looked at Dryden now, it was as though she instantly trusted him, and was willing to let him guide her.

Hitomi looked at Dryden. This was one of the powers of The Lover. He didn't have a mean bone in his body, and he clearly had no will to see anyone hurt. And he was going to help Hitomi through this in the cleanest way possible. He was doing this for her, and as she turned back to Van, she knew it was because he knew how she felt, and he wanted to make this moment the best it could be for her. She was finally with Van again, and Dryden honestly wanted them to be happy together. _ Thank you, Dryden._

"I missed you," Hitomi said, taking hold of Van's hands again. "Living away from you was so hard. Please don't go away again. Please let me stay with you," she confessed. She didn't even care that the doctor was still there, stitching away evenly.

Van put his hand on her hair. "You look different. Your hair has grown out a little." He crushed his eyes together as the doctor did the final stitch.

"There, all done," the doctor proclaimed as he unrolled the gauze he was going to use to wrap Van's back. "If I asked you to come back and see me again in a few days, would you come?" he asked Van.

"Would I?" Van asked Hitomi.

Hitomi didn't know how to answer. "Maybe. We'll see how you're doing," she said.

The doctor asked Hitomi to move as he worked his way around Van to secure the bandages around his shoulders and chest. "That should do it," he said at last. Then he pulled off his latex gloves and headed for the bathroom. "If you need me, don't hesitate," he called to Van.

Dryden came into the room with a button-up-the-front plaid shirt in his hands. "Put this on him, and then we'll head out. Flo says that Van has a car that he wants. I was thinking that maybe I could drive it back and you could take him in the SUV. He'd probably be more comfortable on the backseat than in the sports car. Don't you think?"

Hitomi nodded and took the shirt from him.

Van stretched out his arms and let Hitomi help him. "Who is that guy?" Van asked again.  
"I'll explain," Hitomi said, uneasily. It wouldn't be easy to explain everything that had happened since he'd gone to The Voltage Room, but she'd try. Ohhh, she'd have to explain Folken. That thought made her wince.

She came around to Van's front and started doing up the buttons on his shirt. She wanted to break down and cry on him. He was so dear and he was really there, not a trick that Folken had conjured to deceive her. He was there. At last, her fingers were past the gauze and she was about to do up the second to the last button by his collarbone. She was going to crack.

"I don't feel well," he breathed. Then he suddenly brought his arms around Hitomi and nearly dropped them both to the carpet. He fainted!

"Dryden!" Hitomi called urgently, when she saw Van's face.

Dryden came bolting down the hall. He had gone back to the bedroom for socks and he came back with them in his hand. He rushed to Hitomi and helped her ease Van onto the couch. When he saw Hitomi's panicked expression, he took control of the situation.

"Okay, we're really taking him out of here. Kanzaki, put these socks on him, and then go find his shoes and tie them up and put them in the car. I'll carry him out when Flo is finished packing his stuff. Here are my keys," he said, handing her his car keys. "It should still be warm, so you don't have to worry about that. There's a blanket in the far back for emergencies. Please bring it into the house, and we'll wrap Fanel up in it before we go." He stuffed the socks in her hand and continued, "I know it's hard, but just get moving."

Hitomi nodded and got to work.

* * *

Author's Notes: Welcome back Van-sama! 

Thanks to Kaytala for beta reading - she's sooooo good to me! Thanks to everyone who attends the forum and those who review here. The forum is already set up, so go. Thank you EVERYONE! Love is all around the world tonight!


	22. Mystic Wings

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne.

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-One**

**Mystic Wings**

On the way out, Hitomi picked up Van's bags and moved to follow Dryden out the door. He was carrying Van and laying him across the back seat of the SUV. Hitomi didn't want to talk to Aunt Flo and she was hurrying so that she wouldn't be alone with her. She just wanted to get Van away from there and the sooner, the better.

However, she didn't make it out the door before Aunt Flo stopped her with an unexpected question. "Are you punishing me?" she asked.

Hitomi hadn't anticipated a question like that, and at first she just stood paralyzed at the door, unable to answer.

"Are you punishing me?" Aunt Flo asked again.

"Why would I be punishing you?"

"Because, I …"

"Haven't been nice to me since I arrived?" Hitomi asked, suddenly finding her voice.

"I wouldn't have said it that way."

"Really, how would you have said it?" It was tempting to deliver this line with all the venom Hitomi could summon, but somehow she was able to keep her voice calm. There was no reason to be unnecessarily childish. Hitomi had heard enough of that crap from Marlene.

"Because I didn't encourage you and Van to get together," she answered.

At this, Hitomi turned around and looked at Aunt Flo. Did she know that they were married? Had Van told her? Hitomi didn't think so. If he had, then she wouldn't have blocked the door when she and Dryden showed up. "Have you changed your mind about that?"

"… No. Van needs to be with a woman that is like him, and …"

"I'm not," Hitomi finished, examining Aunt Flo's sad eyes. Something precious was definitely being lost as Hitomi slid her boots on, but she couldn't exactly identify what it was. "I suppose I can understand where you're coming from," Hitomi said, thinking again of her father and how unhappy he was at the way her life was going. He wasn't able to accept her without asking questions about where she'd been. Aunt Flo wasn't exactly like that. She was okay with what Van chose to do about most things, but she really wanted to have a hand in Van's choice of wife. Hitomi had no intention of telling Aunt Flo the truth about her and Van. Instead, she asked, "If I really am Van's choice and I'm not his moon-girl, will you accept me?"

Aunt Flo hesitated.

"You don't have to answer that," Hitomi continued, able to be calm because Van was in the car now and Dryden had gone to get the convertible out of the barn. There wasn't much Aunt Flo could do to stop them from leaving now. "No, I'm not punishing you. This is just a natural consequence of him coming to live with you in the first place. You had to know that eventually he was going to leave, and that at some point, because of who he is … he might not come back."

The stone at Hitomi's neck went cold, but Hitomi put her hand up and blocked Aunt Flo's slap.

"Don't even think of hitting me," she said, as she turned and left the farmhouse. She didn't know if what she said was true, about whether or not Van would ever come back, but one thing was for sure – Hitomi probably wouldn't.

* * *

When they arrived back at the mansion, Van was still unconscious and Dryden carried him up to a guest room himself. He had arranged for Hitomi and Van to share a different room than the one he had originally given Hitomi. He said that room was too small for them, and that they needed a lot more room.

Van slept for hours, and Dryden wouldn't let Hitomi disturb him until it was time for her to go to sleep as well.

"He needs to heal," Dryden said, "and he won't be able to rest if you're … pacing the room, or … whatever it is you'll do if you're in there with him."

Instead, Dryden talked to her more about the Tarot and acquainted her even more with their world.

Hitomi tried to listen but she was tired, too. By eight-thirty she was about to collapse on the couch when Dryden finally gave her permission to go up to bed.

Hitomi padded her way down the hall to the bedroom and clicked the door open as quietly as she could. It was dark out by the time Hitomi came into the room and she fumbled in the dark until she found the switch for one of the bedside lamps. The lamp light filled the room with a dull glow. Van was there, still sleeping on the bed and the light didn't seem to be bothering him – he slept just as soundly. Hitomi didn't know why she'd been afraid that he would go missing again. She hadn't realized until she saw him that she had been insecure. It wasn't like he wanted to go missing in the first place.

The room Dryden gave them was very nice; almost too nice, Hitomi thought. But in a mansion like this, rooms like this one were expected, weren't they? There was a king sized bed with posts and curtains. There was a connecting bathroom and dressing room, a fireplace and a balcony that looked out onto the inner courtyard. Hitomi couldn't see it well, even though she went and looked through the window to see what it was like. The house was so big; she didn't feel like she'd discovered half of it.

Hitomi went into the dressing room and starting stripping. She hadn't even changed out of her school uniform yet. Dryden told her that a maid moved her things into the dressing room of the new bedroom, so Hitomi went there to find her pajamas. Not that her pajamas were very fancy. She was still wearing Van's boxers teamed with a tank top. It was just that when she took off her uniform, she happened to catch a glimpse of herself in one of the mirrors. Her arm … the dragon part of her tattoo was missing!

Hitomi stretched her arm out to get a better look. It was true. Her tattoo had been of a dragon sitting on a crescent moon, but now the dragon was gone and only the moon was left. She stood there thinking rapidly when it dawned on her what had happened when Folken was all over her that morning in his office. He had rubbed her arm, and somehow he had removed her dragon tattoo. Dryden had said that there was almost no limit to what Folken could do with his song, but this seemed too impossible. She nearly ran out of the bedroom that minute to go and talk to Dryden about it, but she stopped herself before she did that. If she talked to Dryden before Van about what Folken did … that would be betraying Van, wouldn't it?

Hitomi switched off the light and said her prayers before she got into bed beside Van. She cuddled as close to him as she dared. He was always injured.

* * *

Hitomi didn't know when she fell asleep, but she woke up again before the sun was up. She heard a noise that sounded like sparking; she heard it over and over again, until it finally agitated her enough to rouse her to consciousness. Her hands reached over to search for Van in the bed, but she couldn't find him.

Then she saw him. He was sitting cross-legged in front of the fireplace. It was lit and bathing the room with a warm fluttering light. He had unbuttoned his shirt and was making little flames with his left hand, looking at his fingers like he was expecting something to be wrong.

Hitomi looked out the window and saw that it was still night. The sky outside looked orange as snow fell on the city. She took a blanket from the end of the bed and wrapped herself in it as she went to join Van in front of the fire.

"How are you feeling?" she asked quietly as she approached him.

He let the fire in his fingers die as she sat down in front of him. "I don't know. I still feel a little woozy, but that's normal for someone who's lost as much blood as I have." He paused, "Hitomi, where are we?"

"This is Dryden's mansion," she answered simply.

"Dryden? That's that guy I saw earlier?"

Hitomi nodded.

"So, what are we doing here?"

"Is that all you have to say? Weren't you worried about me?" she asked a little indignantly.

He looked at her like he was annoyed and rubbed his forehead with his fingers. "Sorry Hitomi. Your gem lets me know when you're in danger and it didn't alert me much while I was gone, so I'm sorry, but I haven't been worried about you. Should I have worried?"

Hitomi shrugged her shoulders. She didn't really want to start out by fighting with Van. Maybe she was going about this the wrong way, but if he was concerned about Dryden, then she'd have to set him straight right away. "Van, Dryden is a Tarot user I've met since you were gone. He's called The Lover, so he can't help exuding this intense sexual vibe wherever he goes, but if you think there's something going on between the two of us, you're dead wrong. I got thrown out of my parents' condo yesterday, and I was staying here because I had nowhere else to go. Don't worry, he's a really good guy, and he didn't put the moves on me if that's what you're worried about."

"Who's worried?" Van asked, turning away.

Hitomi scowled, but then she saw that his ears were red. So, he was worried! She stifled a happy smile and continued with their extremely important conversation. "Anyway, do you want to hear how things have been going for me, or would you rather take the lead and tell me what happened at The Voltage Room?"

"I'd rather if you went first," he said.

"Okay, so my father came to get me after you left. I really wish you hadn't asked him to."

"You had to finish high school!" Van protested.

"Which I'm sure I'll finish someday, but you have no idea how pissed off my father was. He practically kept me under lock and key. I tried to earn his trust, but I couldn't, and so a couple of days ago, it got to be too much and I had to leave. My relationship with my family is worse now than it has ever been in my life. It would have been better for all of us if I had remained 'missing'."

Van looked at the floor. He still had black eyes. "I think it may have been my fault that things went so badly."

"How could it have been your fault?"

"I should have done something to let Allen know that it REALLY wasn't okay for him to talk to you."

"Yeah, you told the Abaharaki not to talk to me. That was a little over the top Van, don't you think?"

"No," Van said, shaking his head. "I should have gone further. Oh well, I guess it can't be fixed now. Go on with your story 'Tomi. I really want to hear it."

"Dryden came to my school to find me and teach me the truth about being a Tarot user. Have you heard the term before?"

"A Tarot user? I hadn't heard it before Folken got a hold of me, and then I heard all kinds of things that Aunt Flo never explained to me. She has done me a serious wrong. I talked to her about it since I got back, but she just looked sort of blank whenever I brought it up. How can a person be your friend and insist on your independent learning that strongly? She could have taught me more in two minutes than I learned on my own in four years. I think that the truth is that she and Balgus didn't really want to help either Folken or I with our perspective abilities. They wanted us to fumble in the dark. I'm even starting to think that it might be partly their fault that Folken went so bad. Even though I went to her house from the facility, I only did it because of Celena. I didn't know what to do for her."

"What?" Hitomi gasped, putting her fingers to her mouth. "Celena?"

Van smiled.

"Van, you've got to tell me everything from the beginning," Hitomi urged desperately. "What happened when you went to The Voltage Room?"

Van looked sad and then he began, "This may be a hard story for you to hear, but please bear it. It's important."

"Okay," Hitomi consented courageously.

"I left Gaddes outside The Voltage Room and went into the club by myself. Folken was there with Dilandau and this other guy that I couldn't see very well. There were other punks there too, but those were the three main players. I walked in and Folken said that he was glad I came, and just as a prize for me actually showing up, they would let Allen and the guys go, but not until our conversation was over."

"What did Folken want from you? Please tell me!"

Van sighed. "He wanted my blood. That was what he asked for when I was at their hideout with you before, as well. He said he wanted five hundred milliliters."

"What?"

"That's the standard amount of blood given when a person donates blood. Folken said he was hurt and that he needed my blood. He said that no one else could give it to him besides me because we're brothers and we both have the abilities. He had a nurse all ready to jab me with a needle, but I wouldn't have it. I didn't believe he was hurt. He was standing there, looking strong as an ox, and I wouldn't do it. I was also pissed as hell that they'd kidnapped six of our people. And for something like that? I was angry. Naturally, I attacked him and Dilandau intervened. Folken split, and then you came. So, when I went to The Voltage Room, I knew that he wanted my blood, and I was prepared to give it to him. I had decided that I was being stupid, putting so many lives on the line for five hundred milliliters of blood. But the thing that was bothering me was the bounty on your head and Folken's invitation for you to go see him. I couldn't figure out what he'd want you for."

"I know," Hitomi said hoarsely.

"Do you? I have my guesses, but I'm not entirely sure. What?"

Saying this to Van was going to be a million times harder than confessing the truth of it to Dryden. She felt sick. She really didn't want to say it. "He wants me to be his … woman," Hitomi revealed feeling ill and looking away from Van.

At first he didn't say anything, and then he whispered coarsely, "That bastard!"

"Please keep going," Hitomi encouraged, hoping to get him back on topic.

Van swallowed and then he swallowed again and unclenched his fists. After that, he seemed able to go on with his story, even though his voice sounded tighter. "They said that now since six weeks had passed, five hundred milliliters was not enough. Folken would need more than that. They said that I'd have to stay until they got enough blood from me to make him better, and it might be months. Of course, they said that they were willing to pay for it. At first, I didn't understand what they meant, so I got it explained to me very seriously. They said that Folken had to have MY blood – that nothing else would do – and if I'd be a good boy and let them have it until he was well, they'd let you off the hook for killing Miguel."

Hitomi's eyes were wide and she thought she might faint on the rug. This was horrible! She'd killed Miguel! She hadn't meant to! It was an accident! He'd attacked her! She was just trying to defend herself. It was an accident! Her thoughts rammed against her skull like the inside of a blender.

Van suddenly grabbed her and pulled her to him. He was warm and it snapped her out of her mental frenzy. He went on to explain softly, "You didn't kill Miguel. They lied to me. You never killed anyone, Hitomi. It's impossible for you. I'm just telling you the lie they fed me. They said they would ignore everything you'd done in the past – like insult Dilandau and ruin one of their buildings and even forgive you for killing Miguel if I let them have my blood. They said that if I didn't, they'd go after you." He was stroking her hair. Hitomi couldn't see his eyes as he went on. His voice was dry and Hitomi knew in her heart that he was about to tell her something terrible. "I couldn't let them have you, so I agreed. Allen and the others were let go immediately. Gaddes drove them away and I was led out to a car that took me to a place that was like a bomb shelter in the middle of nowhere. The inside looked like a hospital with many rooms. They set me up in one of them and started draining me immediately. Folken was beside me – they were pumping my blood directly into him. He was lying on his stomach and that other bastard was there with us, Dornkirk. He was observing to see how quickly Folken's wounds would heal. I didn't believe that monster was actually hurt, but you saw my back. His was exactly like it."

Hitomi flinched. She had seen Folken's back that one day in his office – he was completely healed.

"They told me that they had been trying some experiments on him to see if he would be able to turn into the animal that was his symbol. Apparently, he was able to sprout wings, but it ripped his back apart and nearly killed him. No matter how much treatment they gave him, he just didn't seem to heal, so they decided that the only thing to do was to get my blood. Folken wanted to borrow my powers of healing to bind up his broken back that hadn't stopped bleeding in months. It seems that they knew a whole lot more about my abilities than I did," Van said darkly. "I feel so betrayed by Flo and Balgus."

Hitomi noticed that he didn't say 'aunt' or 'uncle'. He'd stopped using those words.

"They were trying to accelerate Folken's healing, so they started to draw more and more of my blood, so much actually that I needed a blood transfusion. I'm lucky Dilandau isn't a drug addict."

"They gave you Dilandau's blood?"

"Yeah," Van said grouchily. "After it had been in my system for awhile, it was just like mine, so they'd drain me more. Folken was back to his normal self within two weeks. Notice that that's the same amount of time it took for me to heal when I was shot. Once he was better, they started to sedate me and take more blood from me for their 'experiments' I guess. There was one time that they went too far though, taking my blood, and I needed some replaced. Dilandau couldn't give anymore. He was messed up. That kid used to be blonde. Have you seen him lately? His hair is white. That's how hard they were on him, but they were ten times harder on me, because they knew I could take it. I needed blood replaced and they didn't have anyone else who could give to me besides Folken and so … that's who gave. I wouldn't have known at all except that I happened to wake up when he was leaving. Apparently, he fainted and they kept him beside me until he woke up. He was unhappy as he left. I've never seen him so angry. I was really out of it, but I was wondering why he was so angry. Then it occurred to me. If he got my abilities by getting my blood, then I must have gotten his abilities because I got his blood. I learned from the nurse that he didn't want to do it, Dornkirk made him. That man is The Devil. The nurse said that my blood was very important to their research, and that he wouldn't sacrifice me for Folken – that made Folken extremely angry. Dornkirk is his mentor."

"Why didn't you try to escape?"

"I was drugged and tied up. But there was one day, last Monday, when the nurse left me unguarded. She didn't realize that I was there completely against my will. I didn't complain and I didn't struggle. I had regained enough energy that I wanted to go to the bathroom. So, I fried my restraints and got out of bed. Even though I went that far it didn't occur to me that I was probably half way to escaping if I wanted to. When I was in the bathroom, I heard a woman's voice. She was complaining that she didn't want to eat. I thought I recognized her voice so I hobbled into the next room and there was Miguel and Celena. She was in a hospital bed like mine and he was trying to feed her some pudding, but she kept moving away. I remembered everything and went completely insane for … I don't know. Long enough to set fire to the building and not care if I hurt anyone. I grabbed Celena and found myself running through the hallways with her. Then, when I let off a gust of wind strong enough to blow the doors off, I suddenly grew wings from my back. I was completely drugged, though, and the pain wasn't hard to bear. Before I knew it, she and I were outside and I was literally flying (as embarrassing as it was) towards Flo's."

Hitomi bit her lip. "What happened to your wings?"

"They didn't go away. If they had, I would have done something to go see you, but as it was, whatever drugs Dornkirk had me on were wearing off and I felt like crap. Flo called the doctor and he came to treat me, but he had no idea what to do. The wings had burst from my back and broken skin and actually become part of my skeleton. It hurt like breaking all the ribs in your back, or I don't know … it was excruciating. I know it might sound funny, but I wouldn't let the doctor give me anything for the pain. I had been drugged and woozy for months, and I wouldn't have it. To be honest, the pain was like breaking free, and as sick as it was – it felt great."

"I'm sorry," Hitomi said, trying to see his face.

He loosened his grip on her and looked into her face. "There, it seems you took all that much better than I thought you would. What's happened to you since I've been away? You don't look like a teenager anymore. You look like a woman."

Hitomi smiled at him – he thought she looked like a woman. Last time she looked in the mirror, she thought she still looked like a child. How … wonderful. But she still wanted to hear the rest of his story before she began hers. "Is there anything else you need to tell me?"

"Well, I said that I should have told Allen to stay away from you, but I didn't get the chance to give him any special instructions. I only got to see him from a distance before Gaddes drove away. I guess he doesn't take instructions from Aunt … I mean … Flo very well." He sighed, "What a difficult guy! So, when I crash-landed on Flo's front lawn, Eries and Flo came running out to get Celena and me. As soon as we got into the house, you can bet that as soon as they were sure that Celena hadn't broken anything, they were phoning Allen to tell him the good news about his lost sister, and he wasn't answering his phone! Can you believe that?"

"Yes," Hitomi said, thinking of Marlene. He was probably out running around with her – the moron.

"I waited for two days to get a hold of him, and still nothing, so I ordered Eries and Gaddes to take her away. They're in Rose Hill right now staying with the Minister who married us. I was worried that Dilandau would show up right away to claim Celena, and I was too messed up to protect her. So, I sent them away. Here's the part that really pisses me off. That was last Wednesday, and we weren't able to get Allen on the phone until Sunday. Do you know what he was doing during this time? I was starting to worry that Dilandau had snatched him back."

"He was dating my kid sister," Hitomi said, groaning.

"Yeah, and I'm betting that that didn't help your family situation at all."

"No, it didn't."

"Allen told me the truth when I asked him – like he could have said 'no' to me – I scared the hell out of him."

"How so?" Hitomi asked, puzzled.

"My wings didn't go down until the day before yesterday, so even though they had shrunk down a little bit, I still looked like a dark angel who'd come to kill him and exact revenge on his cradle-robbing. Marlene is still a kid and he wanted to recruit her to the Abaharaki! I was so furious with him … he looked really afraid."

Hitomi laughed. "Yes! Yes! Yes! Perfect! I SO wanted him to have his butt kicked!" She hit her palm with her fist. "Did you slap him around or anything?"

"My, you're blood thirsty. Of course I didn't hit him. I was tempted to though – he was being unbelievably stupid"

Hitomi suddenly got serious and grabbed Van's shirt, "So," she said. "You still haven't explained why you didn't call ME when you got back. You phoned Allen, so you've proved you still knew how to use a telephone, so explain … NOW!"

Van looked away. "I wanted you to finish high school and I thought that you couldn't do that if I interfered."

"I can't go to school right now. I have to do it by distance learning or something. I can never go back to that school," Hitomi let go of his shirt and sat back on her butt.

"Why? You've only got half a semester left, and …"

"Folken is a teacher there."

Van's shoulders slumped.

Hitomi had to make Van explain his expression, so she asked him, "Why do you look so unhappy?"

"It's nothing …"

Hitomi shook her head, "It's something, and it's too late at night to be coy. Please tell me."

"It's just … he got to see you everyday."

Hitomi gulped. She was going to show him her arm, and she was going to show it to him right now. "Van," she said. "Folken _did_ something to me that I have to tell you about."

Van perked up. "What?"

"I wish I could hide it from you, but I can't."

Van grabbed her by the shoulders and spoke to her urgently, "Please tell me!"

Hitomi put her hand on Van's and moved him away from her. She let the blanket that she had wrapped around her shoulders slide off and she showed him her arm – the dragon was gone.

Van gaped. "How did he do that?"

Hitomi covered her arm again. "I don't know, but he's The Sorcerer, so I guess he can do that sort of thing."

"The Sorcerer?"

"Yeah, didn't you know?"

Van clenched his jaw. "You know, I really can't explain how angry I am at Flo and Balgus for being so useless. She keeps on parroting his beliefs on independence. That's what she's been saying to me all this past week. He wanted me to discover myself on my own – without the influence of other Tarot users. Those words – Tarot users - are words they never told me – not once. I can't help how I feel, though, and I feel that I was practically dropped naked into a world where everyone else was dressed and prepared except me. When I decided to go to Flo's place when I escaped from the Zaibach Group, I didn't even remember what sorts of things she told me about our abilities to begin with, but when I confronted her with information about The Devil, Dornkirk, she admitted that she knew about him. Everything I had listened so hard to while sedated, she already knew. I couldn't believe it. The only thing she explained to me before in any detail was contracts. She said that a human couldn't live with someone with our abilities and be happy. She confessed that she and Balgus had never been happy together, which was why he was gone all the time when I was growing up. He had really wanted a Tarot wife and had been unable to get one, so she believed that the only way for me to be happy was for me to get a Tarot wife as well."

"That explains a lot," Hitomi said icily, remembering how she'd almost hit Hitomi that morning.

"Yeah, well, I can't talk to her right now. And you can't talk to your parents right now either?"

"No," Hitomi said.

"Well, I have to learn more about my gift before I go back to The Voltage Room. As soon as I'm ready, I'm going back there. I'm going to kill Folken. It's not enough for him to kill my parents; he has to try to steal my wife, too."

Hitomi didn't like Van's voice as he said those words, but she decided not to protest or try to convince him of a different path – not just now. He was saying those things for her. Instead, she said, "Dryden can teach you a lot about your Tarot abilities. He's told me a great deal about mine … I'm just having a little trouble accepting what he's told me, but I haven't had much time to adjust yet."

"What did he tell you?"

"Maybe we can talk about that tomorrow. Dryden has a portrait gallery that is perfect for this kind of a conversation. We should wait for him, as well. He wants to help you, and I want you two to be friends."

"The Lover? And you want us to be friends? That doesn't sound very likely … he seems like a playboy or a … I don't know … a man-whore."

Hitomi laughed at Van's description. "Yeah, that's exactly what I thought when I first saw him too, but he improves when you get to know him. Besides, you'll probably like him because he won't try to hit on you. He has a great deal of respect for contracts, so he would never try anything with me."

"I suppose I'd have to compete with him."

"Compete? What's the point? You'd win. His symbol is a plant, yours is a magical creature – you're levels ahead of him and he'll never catch up."

"Hmm … so I'm more powerful than him?" Van looked strangely satisfied at the concept. "That's news. Well, what about you? What's your level?"

Hitomi hesitated.

"Go ahead, be honest," he urged.

"I'm a goddess," she said slowly.

"I know you're a goddess. Believe me, I know," he said emphatically.

"I don't think you know what I mean when I say that. I mean that I'm … stronger than you - stronger than almost anyone. Dryden says that I'll live forever. That I can't die. That I won't die. We talked about it more this afternoon, and he says that if I have a strong will, no one can even touch me. That I'll eventually stop bleeding and I'll just live forever, like the sun, like the moon, and no one will ever be able to kill me."

"Whoa, Hitomi. Calm down. This sounds a little far fetched. Are you sure you believe what that guy said?"

"It's true," she said. "I know it's true. I've studied it very carefully out in my mind. I'm not that good yet, but some day I will be. I know it."

Van looked doubtful and a little sad, but he looked like he wasn't going to argue the matter with Hitomi. "Tell me about your family. I want to hear how bad it really got before you had to leave."

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Author's Notes: Special thanks to Kaytala for beta reading and for everyone who came back to review when the review function was down last week and they read the chapter days before. Really a very special thank-you. And to everyone who reviews! YOU RULE!

The forum will be up in about twenty seconds, and thanks to everyone who contributes there.

Okay, there are two more chapters after this one, and then an epilogue - then we're done Mystic Wings. One more book to come - Mark of a Goddess. There probably won't be much a of a break between Mystic Wings and Mark of a Goddess. As in one Thursday, I'll finish up Mystic Wings and then the next Thursday I'll open the first chapter of Mark of a Goddess. I'm THAT prepared. Cheers!

Love is all around the world tonight!


	23. Heart of The Dragon

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne.

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**Chapter Twenty-Two**

**Heart of The Dragon**

Hitomi and Van sat up and talked until the break of day when the wind howled outside their window and the fire roared even louder. Van was hurt, but not so hurt that he would let Hitomi be cold, so he wouldn't let the fire die down. Hitomi held him in her lap and told him all the things that happened to her while he was away. She even had the nerve to make some of the less fun things sound funny, so that he would laugh. He still looked absolutely wretched and she wanted to make him smile.

During a lull in their conversation, Hitomi decided to talk about one more important thing. "Van, can I ask you something?"

"Of course."

"When can we finally tell people that we're married? Dryden already knows. I couldn't keep it a secret from him."

"I thought we agreed that we wouldn't tell anyone?" Van asked calmly, but his temper started to come out by the time he finished asking his next question. "So, why did you think it was okay to tell _him_?"

"I didn't tell him!" Hitomi said quickly in her defense. "He just _knew_. That's why he knew not to hit on me. He said the second he saw me it shone in my aura that I was married to you – The Dragon – Ace of Serpents … whatever! Boy! You're jealous! And you always seemed so confident before."

Van smirked, "You're cute."

"All the same … stop obsessing over Dryden. I guess I can understand why he would seem threatening, but when I met him, I just thought he was creepy. He knew it too! I didn't try to keep it a secret from him."

"Oh," Van said, smiling a little bit. "Was that a blow to his ego? I wonder. Oh well, as long as no one was kissing you, I suppose I'll try to keep cool."

"Thanks," Hitomi said, but even as she said it, she nearly bit her tongue out. As long as no one was kissing her? He meant her mouth, right? Cause, if he didn't, then both Folken and Dilandau had kissed her. She hadn't yet told him what happened in The Voltage Room with Dilandau or exactly what happened with Folken in his office. How was she going to tell him those things? Neither of them were really her fault. But, if she didn't tell him … what would happen if he found out from someone else? She'd have to bite the bullet. "Actually, even though Dryden was a complete gentleman, there were a couple of other people who weren't."

Van looked startled, and like he was on the brink of freaking out. He sat up, putting some distance between the two of them and waited for her to explain.

She told the two stories of The Voltage Room as quickly as she could and hoped that he would understand. She couldn't explain about Folken as easily, and she wanted to start slowly. But please! He had to understand! But breaking news like this to him was horrible. Hitomi felt wretched to her core for having to say how she felt as she punched a guy who looked exactly like him, and especially that she had let Dilandau kiss her neck. She couldn't meet Van's eyes at all.

When she was finished he said quietly, "Do you want me to forgive you? Is that why you're telling me all of this?"

Hitomi was shocked. "Would you rather I kept it to myself and didn't tell you?"

"No, I guess not," he said slowly. "As long as you don't expect me to like it. You said there was more than one guy who wasn't a gentleman. I assume you're talking about Folken. What did he do?"

"He sang. I told you that when I was dancing with Dilandau, Folken was singing and when I fought those guys in the kitchen he was singing then too. And then yesterday, before I came to see you, I went to his office to reject his offer and he started singing again. When he sings, I don't know what happens; it's as if whoever hears him does what he wants. They see what he wants them to see. I don't know how else to describe it."

"Well, I've got Folken's powers right now as well as my own. The slices in my back prove it. Should I sing you a song and see if you'll do what I want?" he asked, mocking her.

"Don't be like that," Hitomi said.  
"Sorry. I'm not happy about this, and I find it hard to believe that Folken is that powerful. He can make people do what he wants? He got pushed around by Dornkirk all the time when I was at their hideout. So, what happened in his office while he was singing? What did he _make_ you do?"

Hitomi got up. If he was going to act like this then there was no way she was going to stay with him in this room, but she had to tell him the truth before she left. Then he could be angry with her and decide what he was going to do about their situation. "He kissed my hands and removed my tattoo. He made me think that he wasn't a complete scumbag and that he needed to be taken care of – by me. Then your voice in my head snapped me out of it and I yelled at him. I think I even used your word for him and then he told me you escaped from the facility. I believe he said something like, 'chase after Van if you want to, and come back to me when you're ready'. That's what happened. I'm going downstairs."

Van didn't say anything to stop her and she went stomping out of the room like she was marching in a parade. It was light out now, and she walked through the house trying to figure out what to do with herself. She was considering curling up on one of the couches downstairs and going to sleep when one of the maids approached her and asked her if there was anything she could help her with.

"Are you hungry? Breakfast could be prepared very quickly," the maid said.

Hitomi shook her head. "I wouldn't want to wake the chef."

"Would you like to take a swim in the pool or relax in the hot tub?"

"Hot tub? Yeah, I'd try that."

The maid led her down to the pool area and turned on the bubbles for Hitomi. She explained that the water was kept hot whenever Dryden visited.

"Would you like a …"

Hitomi stepped in – still wearing her boxer shorts and tank top.

"Swimsuit?" the maid finished, looking at Hitomi. Then she smiled and asked Hitomi if there was anything else she needed.

"If Van asks where I am, please don't tell him I'm here," Hitomi said. She thought that they both needed a break. She had never imagined that she and Van would have a fight. They had never fought when they were on their vacation together. Fighting was something that she never thought would happen in her marriage. She hadn't seen her parents fight much until recently and it was a new experience for her. She wasn't sure how she and Van were going to resolve conflict.

The maid went away and Hitomi continued to think about her problems with Van. The water felt very warm though and soon she was looking at the long pool and thinking about doing some laps. Now that she wasn't going to school, she could do this sort of thing in the morning. Maybe, if she stayed here for a while, she could get to know Selphie better.

But soon she was thinking about Van again. Hitomi thought about that night that she'd spent under the stars and how Van had asked her to decide what she wanted from their relationship. She realized that this was another one of those moments when she was going to have to decide what she wanted. She had already made up her mind that she wanted to be with Van, so why did she have to make up her mind again? Especially since, at this moment, the problems seemed to be all on her end. She had tried to sacrifice to be with him, but everything she had tried to do while he was gone turned out all wrong. She had gone to school because he wanted her to, and she went to The Voltage Room twice in order to find him, but nothing she did worked out, and now it just looked like she had been untrue. She hadn't been unfaithful in her heart.

She turned around and rested her elbows on the side of the hot tub, and moved away from one of the jets. It was a stupid test that little girls tried on their boyfriends – running away to see if he would come find her. It seemed unfair to try it on Van. He was hurt. He might not be able to walk through the mansion to look for her. Hitomi remembered the cuts on his back and how lightheaded he seemed. He said he'd lost a lot of blood. Why hadn't she taken biology? She had no idea how much blood was safe to lose. Not only had they been draining him, but he had bled from his wounds as well. He wouldn't have the strength to come find her. She was being immature.

The maid came back with a large terrycloth housecoat and set it down on a chair by the hot tub. She told Hitomi that there were two shower stalls off to the side of the pool if she wanted to take a shower before breakfast and that if she was interested she could have breakfast with Dryden and Selphie in an hour in the dining room. Then she went away.

Hitomi wasn't used to servants and the very appearance and attitude of the girl rattled her. Hitomi tried to remember that it was her job and that it was probably a good job too. Dryden was probably a lot of fun to work for. He was so laid back that things could be done at a leisurely pace, as long as they were done.

Hitomi didn't know how long it had been, but she was warm enough and so she got out and went to take a shower, like the maid suggested. She was starting to get hungry, but more than that, she was extremely tired. She had been up half the night with Van and thought that maybe she could find a way to catch up on some sleep since she didn't have to go to school.

After her shower, she went back into the pool area in order to go up to the dining room. But as she stepped out, she saw Van. He was pacing back and forth, not exactly hobbling, but moving as though it wasn't easy for him. Hitomi jumped backwards to avoid being seen by him as he turned around and started pacing towards her. She wasn't sure if she wanted to see him, and he was so close that she didn't think she would be able to avoid him if she came out of the shower that way. Did he know she was there? But if he knew, why not bang on the door and ask to talk to her? There was no reason for him to wait outside.

Hitomi was about to turn around to see if there was a better way out when Van started talking, and from what he said it was clear that he didn't know she was there.

"I just need to calm down and bring everything into focus," here, he took a deep breath in and moved to do another circuit. "Dilandau kissed her. Folken kissed her," Van continued bitterly. "I guess we should be starting a club. It's no wonder that she attracts this much attention. I should have guessed that it would be a problem, even after we were married. I thought that once we were married, all these problems would be over. She'd be mine and I wouldn't have to worry about other men trying things with her. Yeah, don't tell me – I was being stupid."

Hitomi realized she was listening to a conversation he was having with himself. While he was speaking, she looked around for a cell phone or an earphone, but he was wearing neither. He was just pacing, but he was talking about her. He was saying things that he couldn't tell her, and she needed to listen to them. It was underhanded, but she needed to listen.

"She's a goddess, eh? I can easily believe that. Of course she is. She's the kind of woman who would bring even a murderer like Folken to his knees. I'm an idiot to believe that she could love me. She acts like she still cares, but it's been months since we've been together, and even now, she will hardly touch me. She says she's worried about me because of my back. She doesn't want to hurt me, but is that really the reason? I wouldn't care if she ripped my wounds open afresh if I was only certain that this time apart hasn't ruined us. It has, hasn't it? And I can't bear it." His hand was at his forehead and he was talking louder. "She has all these new friends who know way more about our situation as Tarot users than I ever did. I must seem like a pretty stupid guy compared to everything Dryden has told her. And I was low enough to act like I doubted him. I wouldn't trust him alone with Hitomi for five minutes, but he obviously knew something by the way he reacted when I said that Folken was working for The Devil. I've never seen another Tarot user besides Folken, Hitomi and Dornkirk – and Dryden is obviously one of them, too. Why do I act like such a jealous idiot? Why can't I just trust her?"

Here, he stopped pacing and went to sit at a chair closer to where Hitomi was hiding. She thought he might see her, but he was completely engrossed in what he was saying. He threw himself in one of the deck chairs, rested his elbows on his knees and continued talking – slower this time.

"Is it because she didn't throw her arms around me when she found me at Flo's? Is it because she didn't know innately that I was there for a whole week before she showed up? Do I think she should have known? How could she have known? I'm the ass who asked Allen not to tell her when he went to go break up with Marlene. I should have begged him to bring Hitomi to me immediately. Why the hell did I think I could endure the pain of those wings alone? Why did I think that I had to? She could have come – the sight of her would have been a blessing to me. Why do I always make both of us go through things the hard way? My aunt hates her because I can't confide in her that Hitomi is 'the' girl. Her family hates her because she's outgrown the apron strings and they don't want to let her go. Even thinking about the rest of what she's been through without me is enough to make me … look like the bad guy in all this for putting her through it. Sure, she wasn't bled like I was, but after everything – it's a miracle she didn't ask for a divorce when she found me. There are enough men who want her – she'd never be lonely … and that's my problem … my real problem. I'm always alone."

Hitomi gulped. Van had never complained about these things to her before. He had always seemed so strong and immovable, like nothing ever bothered him. He kept all these things inside him?

"Being with Hitomi for those few weeks was like a dream. I could even stay close to her during the night and didn't have to go away. I want those days back, and they'll never come back. It feels like all of that is over and that she's somehow moved on past me, and I can't catch her. And that hurts because I don't want to let go. She even laughed about how angry her father was when she and Allen showed up at four a.m. How strange – she laughed. I still feel the connection with her when we talk, but she didn't even try to comfort me when she confessed what happened with Dilandau and Folken. She seems angry with me for being jealous. Is that because she feels guilty, or because she doesn't want to defend herself? Either way, she seemed to think that I shouldn't be hurt. Like hell I'm not hurt." He paused, "But how do I make things better? Does she even want to be with me anymore? It's been nearly three months and that's a long time. People move on from relationships faster. We were only together for four months to begin with … I'm too scared to ask her. She could move on from me, but I could never move on from her. There's no one else for me. I'm a monster."

Hitomi nearly got up here to contradict him and tell him that there was no way he was a monster, but he was laughing. It was a quiet cynical laugh that seemed to come from the bottom of his stomach. She dared not interrupt him until he pulled himself together.

"Why can't I just be honest with her? Why can't I flake out and say how hurt I am that she let these guys take advantage of her? I'm so disappointed. All those weeks away from her, I lay in that stupid bed and thought about her. I thought about everything about her until I couldn't remember anything about myself except that I was in love with her."

What was he saying?

"I thought about how her ankles looked when she wore sandals and the way her shampoo smelled – strawberry vanilla. She sleeps on her back with her hands over her head and I would imagine drawing her close to me," he said dreamily. Then he continued, sounding raspier than before, "I never would have imagined that one of those nights I dreamed of holding her that she would be at The Voltage Room dancing with Dilandau. Why can't I just let it go? She was with me last night. Why can't that be enough? I really want her to be faithful, and … hell, I want her to be my mine."

Hitomi jolted and somehow the towel dropped out of her hair and fell on the floor. She hadn't even noticed that it was slipping. She didn't know if Van noticed, but she decided to come out of her hiding place and to go talk to him.

"Van," she said quietly, and his head snapped around at the sound of her voice.

"I asked the maid where you'd gone. She said that she only knew that you weren't here, so I came here to figure myself out. Did you hear me talking?" Van asked, across the pool deck. His voice echoed. He looked more handsome than before. His eyes weren't so black and some of his natural colour had returned to his face. The angles of his features seemed sharper when his mouth was drawn taunt. Maybe he looked so gorgeous because he was beat up.

"I don't know if I heard all of it," she began, each word sounding far apart with too many seconds in between. "You always seem so mature; it was weird to hear you talking like that."

"Oh? Are you disappointed in me? It hardly matters now anyway," he said dryly - his face returning to the face he wore that was confident, concise and infinitely powerful in Hitomi's eyes, but this time she knew that it wasn't real. It was just the face he wore for people to make them believe in him. It wasn't really who he was. He was just like everyone else. He was weak sometimes; sometimes he was strong. He wore the mask so well, though, that sometimes Hitomi forgot the lesson she had learned about him – that he was a real person, too.

"It _does_ matter. I didn't mean to hurt you. I guess I left out the part of the story where I say that I went to The Voltage Room to make Dilandau tell me where you were. I agree that I shouldn't have danced with him, but at the time, I didn't understand that it could go so wrong. When he changed into you, I was so … ecstatic to see you. It's you I want to be with, Van. It's always you I want to be with. I haven't changed my mind. I never even thought about changing my mind. It's you."

He looked at her, and there was hopelessness in his eyes. "I wish I could believe you."

"No, Van … don't do it this way. Don't put _us _through this. I'll prove it to you!" she asserted, trying to think of what she could do or say to change his mind.

"Then come here, Hitomi," he said urgently before even a heartbeat had passed. "I don't want you to treat me like an invalid. I don't care if it hurts for you to put your arms around me, but you must do it if you want to convince me that you still want a relationship with me."

For Hitomi, it hadn't just been that he was injured. That was not the only reason why she had been hesitant to be close to him. She didn't want to jump all over him and be overanxious if that wasn't what he wanted. And she was shy. They had come so far in their time together at the cabin and now she felt shy, but damn it – she wasn't going to lose him over something like this.

She covered the space between them with long fast strides and put her arms around his neck.

As soon as she was within his reach he pulled her close to him and he covered her mouth with his. It was the kind of kiss that enveloped everything and made the room midnight black, leaving the two of them alone in the dark. Van showed everything that he had felt for months, all the pent up emotion intensified with the touch of his lip. It was the kind of kiss that a man only used when he'd had been taken past his limit. He'd been kept at arm's length for long enough, and he hated being discarded. He couldn't leave her alone – _he_ was her lover and he couldn't help but want her, feel jealous of her time, feel desperate for her love, and fearful that her feelings for him would fade and disappear.

Only she could satisfy him. If she wasn't really his, with this, she would be.

Then came the heat Hitomi had been waiting for, and she melted.

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Author's Notes: Here's for first thing in the morning - just for Kiya. Special thanks to Kaytala for beta reading and to everyone who takes the time to review, and goes to my forum. Which reminds me that the forum for chapter twenty-two is now up. Remember, one more chapter after this one and then an epilogue and then we're SO done Mystic Wings. 

With all that said, I'm gonna say again how ridiculously happy all of you make me and how totally pleased I am that you read my story. Thanks!


	24. The Devil

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne, but I am happy to have this chapter off my lappy.**  
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**Chapter Twenty-Three**

**The Devil**

Dryden took Hitomi and Van into the gallery the next day and explained the theories behind Van's abilities to him. After, he explained Hitomi's. Van nodded, seeming to understand truth when he heard it, though Hitomi wasn't sure if he'd internalized it yet.

Then Dryden took Van to his uncle Balgus' picture and explained the little bit that was known about him.

Van looked at the picture like he was almost disgusted.

"Is something wrong?" Dryden asked Van, looking at him over the rims of his glasses.

"No, I just thought that he would have bothered to teach me something, since he was a younger brother himself," Van said levelly.

"Oh, well, he could read minds, so maybe he knew a lot more about you than you realize. Maybe he thought you'd be much better off without his interference. By all accounts, he was very jaded, so he might not have wanted to pass that onto you. You'd be jaded too if you constantly heard everyone's mean-spirited thoughts about you. Besides, even though wolves live in packs – they are independent creatures – so he may have wanted to encourage your independence."

"There's no doubt about that. My aunt has drilled me on that subject plenty thanks. Can we move onto the next picture?"

"Of course," Dryden said, ushering them to the front of the gallery. Dryden seemed content to let Van's bad feelings for his uncle slide. Hitomi thought Dryden would figure out some way to let Van know how his family felt about him – that was just Dryden's way. Dryden was always in love with everyone. "Let's start at the front of the gallery. These haven't been hung in order. Not chronologically or alphabetically, or categorized by power level, or anything. I have another gallery in my villa. That is the gallery that is precious to me – this one belonged to my father – and he just put them in this order because he thought they would look best this way, considering the way the light reflected."

"What about Folken, Van, and mine's?" Hitomi asked.

"I brought those from my private gallery and had them hung just for you two," Dryden said with a smile. "They don't really belong here. I have to commission some more artists for those three, which I haven't done yet. I'm so slow at these things. I'd much rather be off …"

"Please don't say it," Van interrupted. "I just want to hear about the pictures – not about your woman."

Dryden looked at Van. He was standing with both his arms wrapped around Hitomi. Dryden rolled his eyes and looked piteous. "He says _that_ as he rubs it in my face that Selphie went shopping this morning!" he exclaimed and then he shrugged the expression off and began his narrative on the first portrait in the gallery. "Here is The Fish. He was also The Scholar."

"Is there an interesting story behind him?" Hitomi asked excitedly.

"No," Dryden replied flatly as he scanned the page of the book he was reading. "His element was water. Let's move on."

The next picture was simply a canvas that had been painted all one colour – purple. The word on the top line was 'Purple' followed by 'The Emperor' on the second line. "He had extremely good luck – well beyond that of a human's. He lived his life wealthy, controlled lightning, and had a very strong fetish for wine."

The picture after that was of a book and the title was 'The Historian'. "This woman is still alive. She is my mother's first cousin. It's her daughters who are in love with me – ugh!" he said, sticking out his tongue. "She's batty about our history and will eventually sink her teeth into both of you for your life's history. Try not to tell her anything you wouldn't want repeated; she a horrendous gossip. She's the one who was able to get Akira's story and the same woman who was thrown out of Balgus' house often enough to discover that air was one of his elements."

"What's her element?" Hitomi asked.

"I believe it's earth," he said, moving onto the next picture. "This next one is 'The Undertaker'. He's long dead, but I believe he somehow got turned into 'death' for the tarot card deck. Hitomi, don't ask me what his element is. It should be obvious."

"Earth?"

"Obviously. Hitomi, I want you to start thinking of these things yourself. From now on, you are to tell me what their element or elements are. You need to learn your Tarot users, so that when new people receive their abilities, you'll be able to make those oh-so-precious guesses as to what they can do. Van can help you if you need him to," Dryden added, looking at his book again. "Try it with the next one."

Hitomi followed Dryden and wondered why he wasn't testing Van in the same way he was testing her. Was it because Van was a guy? Could it be because Van was only a few years younger than himself? Did he think that Van wouldn't take that sort of 'I'm teaching _you_' attitude very well? That must be it!

The next portrait was a pornographic sketch of a man – 'The Whore'.

"Dryden, you can't be serious. How am I supposed to figure this out?" Hitomi whined.

"Well, something to be aware of is that what we happen to be looking at during any randomly selected moment of our lives says a lot about us. A truck driver will spend a lot of time staring at the open road. It's very rare that our symbols do not reflect something serious about ourselves. My mother and I tried to manipulate mine, but it failed. Now, I think that my symbol is a very close reflection of the kind of life I lead – beautiful, fragile and needlessly expensive for something so free. So, what sort of abilities would you expect a person like this to have?"

Hitomi stared and she tried to come up with something, but she couldn't. It was a little embarrassing, but she finally admitted that she didn't know.

"What about you, Van? What do you think?"

"Well, just by comparing her to what I know about you, I'd say she'd be an absolute pro at getting someone into bed with her. Maybe even someone who didn't want to go – which appears to be worse than you."

"What a compliment," Dryden said sarcastically. He couldn't be put off by Van's insults. "Keep going."

"I'd also venture to guess that she was killed for breaking a Tarot contract. Am I right?" Van continued.

"Perfectly," Dryden said.

"Now as to her element – I'd say darkness – just as a guess," Van said.

"And you guessed right. Good. Let's move on."

"How did you know all that?" Hitomi asked Van in his ear.

He smiled. "It makes perfect sense. She probably cheated on the first Tarot man she slept with, so they would have killed her, but she would probably have left a child, so the line didn't die."

"You've learned a lot quickly," she observed.

"Have I?"

She nodded. He was cute when he was smart.

The next portrait was of 'The Wanderer' – Dryden's mother. Dryden explained her to Van the same way he had explained her to Hitomi and encouraged them to move onto the next picture. It was a glass of wine and labeled 'The Drunk'.

"What do you think, Hitomi?" Dryden asked.

"Water?"

"… Not quite."

"Earth?"

"Good job! He died young and none of his other abilities were ever discovered. To have an addiction like that only facilitated by your Tarot symbol – you'd be wasted for the rest of your life."

The next picture was of a sword. Hitomi was surprised at how many pictures were of inanimate objects. That seemed to be the most common thing. No wonder Dryden wasn't ashamed about having a plant for his symbol – there didn't seem to be many of people who did. This one was 'The Warrior'.

"There has to be a story behind this one," Van said.

"Not really. He was a warlord in Scotland a couple hundred years ago. This is one of the older pictures here and The Historian had a hard time finding anything. I believe she's still looking. I don't know, but it's known what his elements were. Care to guess, Hitomi?'

She stood and thought about it. This one wasn't as easy as the glass of wine. There were obvious guesses that time. This was harder. Okay, so a sword is made of steel and steel is a mineral, so could it be earth. But Dryden just said that were 'elements', so that implied more than one. What could the other one be? How was a sword made – with fire?

"Earth and fire?" she asked, hoping she was right.

"Very good," Dryden praised. "It's rare for someone with an object for a symbol to have more than one element, but this guy had two and those were them. Good work Hitomi!"

Van kissed her on the cheek to congratulate her, and she smiled. He made her smile.

The next picture was a pool of blood and the caption was 'The Vampire'. "This gentleman was the eldest son of two Tarot users. He was the obvious heir, and he was very anxious about his gifts. However, his father and his mother just kept right on living, and he was getting impatient. So, he decided that he would kill his father, rather than his mother, and pick the symbol that he wanted. He was prepared to look at it at the exact moment of death – I believe it was to be a cat (a very powerful symbol). He slashed his father's throat, in order to make it as painless as possible, but he happened to be looking at the blood when his father's heart beat for the last time rather than at the cat figurine he had brought with him. So, his title was The Vampire, and unfortunately he became a vampire in every sense of the word. Needless to say, being a vampire didn't work out too well for him. This was a hundred years ago, or more, and I think the story is that the Sun God got him, but there is no child raised by Tarot users who does not know this story. It's famous and it's very true. You cannot murder anyone to get your Tarot abilities – it will always go wrong. You won't get what you want, and you'll become a murderer. With that said, what do you think his element was?"

"Darkness?"

"Probably – next," Dryden said, moving them along. "This next one is for 'The Saint'." It was a picture of a cross. "Can you tell me his element?"

"Light?" Hitomi answered.

"And can you tell me any of his other abilities?"

Hitomi stood there and thought. "I'm not exactly sure. Van, do you want to venture a guess?"

Van hesitated.

"Go ahead if you think you know it," Dryden encouraged.

"I would guess that he had the ability to heal others, but not himself - to see the best in people and to look on all people as though they were special, even sinners," Van mumbled while looking at the floor.

"Told you The Dragon was smart," Dryden said to Hitomi with a wink. "Let's move onto the picture for The Sun God."

"I have a question," Hitomi said before they moved to the next picture. "I was wondering what would happen if someone happened to be looking at the stars when they got their Tarot symbol? How would that work out?"

Dryden sighed. "I think they would probably end up a lot like The Sun God, except they wouldn't live forever, but they would probably be able to haunt as ghosts for a really long time. Stars are just suns that are far away, or rather, our sun is just a star that is near. Stars are not considered one of the eternal symbols. This is the portrait," he said pointing to the next picture.

It was a massive sun with long rays stretching out of it. At the bottom of the picture were two little boys. One had black hair and the other had blonde. Hitomi didn't understand and she asked about it.

"This picture was done awhile ago. It's unusual because it actually shows a picture of The Sun God himself. Both of those little boys are said to be him. Apparently, The Sun God told someone that before he received his symbol he had dark hair and dark eyes, but afterwards his hair changed colour to blonde and his eyes changed colour to blue. It's a really mysterious story and there are rumours that it's probably not true, but the picture was a rare one, and so my father had to have it," Dryden said and then he told Van the story of The Sun God and listed his known attributes.

"I see," Van said when Dryden finished. "So, why hasn't this guy come to see Hitomi if she's the next best thing?"

"Who's to say that he hasn't? He might have pulled the same trick as Folken and I and attended Hitomi's school. Who knows? He might have even showed up way before that to check out what kind of person she was. It's impossible to say. I don't want to venture a guess."

Hitomi didn't pick up that Dryden was uncomfortable talking about where The Sun God might be and when, but Van did and his next question reflected it. "Are you afraid of him?"

Dryden gulped, and it was then that Hitomi realized that he was afraid. Why?

He smiled and tried to shrug it off. "It's just that … I haven't always been as … good as I am now. I would hate for him to meet me as I am. He would see straight through me and I would be a coward. I want to be able to stand up tall when I meet him."

"You sound like you think meeting him would be like meeting God," Van said.

Dryden looked at the floor. "I don't think I can easily explain my feelings to you," he said, fixing his glasses and moving down the gallery. "It's time we stopped joking around and we got on with why we're really here." Dryden slammed the book he was using for reference on the floor like it was a football and walked with long determined strides to the picture covered with the sheet. With far more energy than Hitomi thought possible for Dryden, he ripped the billowing sheet off the canvas to reveal the pitchfork.

Van let go of Hitomi and rushed to follow Dryden. He stood before the picture – horrified. Hitomi took to her feet and came up behind the two men.

"This is the portrait of Dornkirk Zaibach. He is the Tarot user known as The Devil. He is the man in charge of the Zaibach Group; the man pulling the strings for Folken and the Dragon Slayers. He was born before the First World War and he isn't dead yet. He was a Tarot user who was abandoned by his mother and father outside a village near the Caspian Sea in Russia. He lived poor – abominably poor - during the two world wars. He lived on the brink of starvation until he was nearly forty. He never married and never had any reason to be happy. He was forced to work as an unpaid, hired hand by the couple who found him as an infant and raised him. He was cleaning their barn when his Tarot abilities hit him, and the first thing he saw was the pitchfork he'd been using. The records say that afterwards he went and murdered the couple who raised him, along with their entire family and every other person he hated. Then he ran from the police, leaving Russia and then coming to our country to begin living his new life. He suddenly became possessed with many talents that he had never before had. Now he is charismatic, charming, willful, cruel, powerful and twisted. Abused and mistreated his whole life, he had no pity for anyone and he started a syndicate to feed his new fixations – mainly murder – but it branched into other things. Our city isn't the only one where the Zaibach Group exists, but it seems to be a place that they've been more than successful. Hitomi, can you tell me what his element is?"

Hitomi couldn't answer. She was feeling sick, but she felt determined not to be squeamish, "Darkness?"

"No," Dryden answered.

Hitomi thought, _Hell was fiery, right?_ "Fire?" she asked aloud.

"No," Dryden said louder.

Then what could it be? She pressed herself further, "Air?"

"NO!"

Van cleared his throat. "It's light, isn't it?"

"You'd better believe it!" Dryden nearly yelled. Hitomi had never seen him so uncontrolled. "Now, would Van be good enough to tell me your side of this story? I want to hear what happened while they had you. Do you trust me enough to tell me?"

Van's jaw was tight, like he didn't want to answer. The seconds were ticking hard, and for a moment, Hitomi thought that Van would turn on his heel and leave the gallery without answering Dryden. She was amazed when he finally did speak. "I don't exactly want to relive it," he said, "but I suppose it's better if I'm open. I'll tell you everything you want to know."

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"So, Van, did you know The Devil's element was light because you had met him in person?" Hitomi asked after Van retold his story to Dryden. Now they had moved out of the gallery and were eating lunch in the dining room.

"No," Van said. "The man hardly spoke when I was around. He's very old, and his body is a wreck. When I met him in The Voltage Room he was rolled into the meeting in a wheelchair piloted by Dilandau. He didn't say anything except to cough that they needed more blood than the amount Folken had suggested before. He just seemed sort of old and grey. There wasn't any personality in him."

"Then how did you know?"

"Dryden said he was charismatic, so I thought that he would be able to convince someone to do something wrong by making them believe that they were doing something right. Like when Folken murdered my parents; I'll bet Dornkirk urged him to do it," Van finished with his teeth gritted together.

Dryden jumped in and quickly changed the subject, "But they were trying to change Folken into a crow?"

"Yeah, that's what it sounded like. It sounded like they wanted to expand his powers and learn more about Tarot users. I'm not sure why they would _want_ to do something like that. It's doesn't make any sense to me."

"I'll have to think about it," Dryden said, and then he took a drink of water.

"It doesn't matter what they were trying to do," Van said, getting up from his chair. "It doesn't matter at all. We have to go after them and stop them. What do you think they learned by taking so much of my blood?"

"Calm down!" Dryden shouted, using just the right pitch to get Van's attention. "You – relax. You've been away from Hitomi for months. Just focus on her for now. Who knows, if you go off without thinking things through, this might be the last time you see her."

Van paused in his rampage and figuratively dumped a glass of water on his fuming nerves. "I can't do nothing!" he spat angrily. Then he slammed himself back into his seat and proceeded to munch on his salad, using as many muscles and jaw movements as it took a cow to chew.

Hitomi smiled. He was so cute!

After the meal, Dryden suggested that Van should probably rest, and then he casually disappeared into a deeper part of the house. It was nice of Dryden to leave them alone as often as he did. Hitomi admired his tact.

Van looked across the table at Hitomi and said indifferently, "I've been thinking about what you said and I've decided that we'd better do it."

"Do what?" Hitomi questioned, unsure of what he was referring to.

His colour heightened and as he turned his head away his hair fell in his eyes so that Hitomi couldn't see his expression. "You asked me when we could tell people that we're married … I think now is a good time."

"Really?" Hitomi asked, surprised. She hadn't expected him to suggest it himself. She was starting to think that he would want her to keep it a secret forever.

"Yeah. It will probably be embarrassing to admit to everyone that we've been married for months, but you won't be embarrassed, will you?" One of his eyes peeked out from between his bangs, and she could tell that he wanted to see if this admission would make her happy.

"Thank you, Van," she said, her eyes welling up with little tears. "I wanted to tell my mother, and Eries, and … I didn't like keeping it a secret."

"Well, I was being selfish. I didn't want you to tell before, because I was worried that Folken might try to kill me if he found out that we were married. He might have found out from anyone if it wasn't a complete secret. But, that was only part of the reason."

"Oh?" Hitomi said, nudging him for more information when he stopped talking.

"I didn't want to lose you," he said, his eyes flashing with deep feeling like scarlet stars in the deepest part of his eyes. "Now, I'm being selfish again. No more extracurricular boyfriends for you. I want you all to myself, so I have to give you a legitimate reason to tell your hopefuls. You can say you're married and if they don't back off your husband will kick their asses."

"Thank you, Van," she said; so happy that he was with her again that she couldn't hold back her tears.

He smiled at her. It looked like he had been trying to change the mood with his last comment, but it had obviously failed. He got up from his chair and came around to her. His hands lifted her from her chair and he brought her close to him. "I've been secretive, Hitomi. I didn't want to talk too much before I left, because I knew what would happen when I went to The Voltage Room. It seemed pointless to bring you entirely into my life when I was going to be gone, but I'm not leaving like that again. And this time, I really do want to bring you into my world." He paused and stroked her hair, "Because I want our relationship to be the most important. I want to learn everything there is to know about you and I want you to know everything about me. This time … I won't leave you in the care of another man. I'll never do that again."

"But you're still planning to go after Folken?" she asked quietly.

"Yes."

"But what if something happens to you?"

"Dryden's right that I shouldn't run off without thinking things through. He said that I have all eight elements, so I should learn how to use them and then Folken will be no match for me. I'll train and then there won't be anything to worry about, because I'll make it back to you … no matter what."

Hitomi didn't like to hear Van talk about Folken. When he did there was something in his voice that disturbed her, something that said louder than his words that he was dead set on getting his revenge on him. She buried her head in Van's shirt and just tried to appreciate the nearness of him, the light scent of musk, and the feel of his arms around her.

"You think that's the best course?" Hitomi asked.

"I do. Besides, it's not just my revenge. Who knows what evil plan Dornkirk and Folken are scheming together? I have to stop them. The Abaharaki are gone now, but there has to be something that I can do."

"But what happens after you've …"

His fingers were suddenly under her chin and he was bringing her eyes up to meet his. His voice was quiet and calm as he said, "Please tell me you love me, Hitomi. I haven't heard you say it in such a long time."

She was caught entirely off guard by the intensity of his eyes and she forgot about her question. "I love you, Van," she whispered. "I'm so glad you're back. I missed you so much," she admitted, clinging to him.

Van exhaled a breath like he was relieved. Then he smiled and said to her blithely, "Little Goddess, I'll definitely worship you."

**The End**

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Author's Notes: Is it really 'The End'? No, not really. There's an epilogue coming out in a few days and another book that I'll start to release next Thursday, so no, it's not really the end, but it's an 'almost' end ... sort of. 

Special thanks to Kaytala for beta reading - she's an angel. I made her beta this chapter twice - such an angel. And thank you to everyone who reviews and posts on my forum. I LOVE YOU GUYS! The forum for this chapter is already up and running, so please go comment there if you're interested. Tonight I'm also opening a priliminary forum for the next book called 'Mark of a Goddess' where I'll be posting the synopsis for the next book and everyone can come say how pumped they are ... ya know ... if you feel like it. Well, I'm pretty pumped for it. Cheers!


	25. Epilogue Black Wings

Disclaimer: I don't own Escaflowne. But this is the epilogue for Mystic Wings.

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**Epilogue**

**Black Wings**

Folken watched Dilandau run a hand through his now silver hair. His fingers weren't steady. He was trembling. The ashes from his cigarette were falling on the carpet and making burn marks. The late afternoon sun came in through the window blinds of Folken's private office in long yellow stripes. The clouds had parted and it had stopped snowing, just for long enough for the sun to set. It was almost the darkest time of year.

Folken shook his head. He always knew that Dilandau would be unstable if something like this ever happened concerning Celena. Dilandau was an excellent gopher, but without his woman neatly secured, he was likely to go off the deep end. Folken had kept him under tight control for over a week, but Dilandau's condition was quickly deteriorating. Folken thought he would be dead soon. It wasn't that Folken particularly wanted to save his life. If the teenager actually did die, it would probably hurt Folken's conscience later on, but at this moment, Folken cared so little about what happened to the fur ball that if he didn't stop coming unglued soon, Folken would take the matter into his own hands – and Folken didn't like getting his hands dirty.

Folken had held Dilandau at bay, but now that Hitomi had rejected him, there was no reason to restrain him another minute. Now, Folken felt confident setting Dilandau loose and giving him a chance to get his woman back.

"It's time," Folken said, approaching the young man who was practically decomposing in Folken's armchair. "If you want to go after The Dragon and to get your woman back – go ahead."

"You're not going to try to stop me?" Dilandau asked incredulously. He looked like he didn't believe that Folken meant it.

"Yeah, go ahead. Do whatever you want," Folken said darkly, and at this second, he didn't care if Hitomi was caught in the crossfire. An unchecked Dilandau might end up doing anything. It was possible that she might get hurt. Well, if she was, it was her fault for sticking to Van so closely. Folken wouldn't do anything to protect her unless … well, he hadn't exactly given up on her. Dornkirk said that they had to get Van back, and Folken betted that Hitomi was the best person to lead them to him. Since she _loved_ him so much! Folken felt something uncomfortable in his throat as he thought about it. _How sick!_ She was a kid. She didn't know what love was. If she changed her mind and came back to him, he'd show her what Van never could. But things had to be done in order.

First, Van had to be returned to their treatment facility. The one he was in before was trashed, along with most of their research, but there was a new building being built now, made specifically to house him. Dornkirk said he was close to learning some things about Tarot genetics, and Folken had decided to help him. That's right – he decided. It wasn't something he could go back on now. The building would be built quickly. It was being built with syndicate money – so a lot of it. The Zaibach Group could pay for anything.

After Van was carefully tucked away again, Celena would have to be brought back to Dilandau. When they'd had Allen captured, Dilandau had been able to get what he wanted out of her. Getting Celena back would definitely bring Dilandau back down to earth, or back up from hell. Dilandau wouldn't be allowed to rampage out of control on a continual basis – just until Van was locked up again.

Van locked up? Folken liked the idea more and more as he thought about it. It had been nice to have The Dragon out of commission. Folken felt a lot freer knowing that they wouldn't cross paths. Van was always trying to kill him, and it made Folken uncomfortable to walk around unprotected. He might be The Sorcerer, but that didn't mean he had eyes in the back of his head. It was hard for him to admit the truth, but something happened to make him doubt himself. After Van's blood was put in him he was a lot different. Once, when he was angry with one of his subordinates he happened to snap his fingers and when realized that he summoned a flame – he realized something else – something else that he would only admit in one of his more honest moments. Van was more powerful than he was. Van's powers were fading from him more and more with each passing day. It was painful to admit, in more ways than one, but Folken wasn't as strong as Van and he knew it.

Folken was an unusual creature and he prided himself on it. He had his moments where he thought he'd like to hurt Van, but that was as destructive as he ever got towards his younger brother. Folken could never kill Van. There was just something there inside him that wouldn't allow it. He simply couldn't kill Van. Yet, Van didn't seem to have the same feelings and Folken knew that the next time they met, Van would kill him. Folken crushed his eyes together in sorrow at the thought. He wouldn't be able to fight Van and one blow from The Dragon might send him into the next world. Folken didn't want to die, and he didn't want to fight Van, so he was sending Dilandau to do his dirty work.

And there was Hitomi. Why had he pulled back? She had been completely under his power. He could just have easily started another song and taken her out of the school, back to his place and then he could have made her contract bound without another word on the subject. However, when he had her sitting in his lap … he couldn't do it, and he stopped singing. She was a child. She was so much like Akira, except Akira didn't look innocent and Hitomi did. No matter how much Hitomi tried to do the 'I'm a rebel' act, she just looked like a frightened child to Folken.

"I'm not a rape artist," was what he'd told Dornkirk when he asked Folken why he hesitated.

"There's no one else," Dornkirk had reminded him.

"I know," Folken admitted dryly.  
"There may not be anyone else. Do you want The Dragon to get ahead of you?" Dornkirk asked.

Folken still remembered the distain in his master's voice, but Folken gritted his teeth and answered properly, "I must have her consent when she's awake and herself."

"You still believe you can get that?"

Folken smiled and left the room, "If I can't then I won't have her. That's all there is to it. Like I said, I don't rape little girls."

That's what Folken said, that he wanted her consent, but he didn't know how to approach Hitomi. It seemed so weird and stupid. He told her that the age difference didn't matter, but it did matter. She was from an entirely different generation. He was almost old enough to be her father, and he didn't know what to do for her. In his experience with women, a show of money was all it took to get what he wanted. Sometimes it took even less. There were always scores of women at his concerts who wanted to be with him. He had never perfected his 'seduction act'. It hadn't been necessary. His only idea had been to use his song – which was a cop-out for him. That was what he used in desperate situations when he had to have his way. He would rather be smart, and having to use it with her was … well, pathetic. He first wanted to see if she'd fall for a Van look alike, but she hadn't. She knew the difference. The second try was for him to offer her knowledge about her gifts. Neither idea had worked. He had been at the school for a while watching Hitomi to see if he could figure out a way to get through to her romantically. As he watched her, she didn't even seem interested in the boys there. It was like she thought they weren't good enough for her. She was even friends with the two most popular boys, Dryden and Amano, but neither of them got anywhere with her, even though it looked like they were _both_ trying in their own ways.

When Folken was at the school observing Hitomi, he didn't develop any feelings for her. It was almost the opposite. He didn't like where she was in her life. She was a high school student – a girl – a child. The list went on. In her defense she seemed far better than most of them intellectually. Physically, she looked too young. Her eyes were too tame. Folken couldn't envision her as his mate. He wanted a 'woman'. He wanted someone curvy and tall and luscious, with an intellect like a razorblade and a way of holding a wine glass. He envisioned a woman who was not only the perfect thing for him to have on his arm, but also the perfect person to let into his head. He was an ordinary Tarot user, as in he wanted to have someone who was like him, but even though Hitomi was a Tarot user, she just wasn't it. When he thought about it more analytically, he knew that someone under the age of twenty-five just wouldn't cut it.

However, it was just as Dornkirk said – there was no one else. Hitomi was the only Tarot user who received her powers after Folken and Van.

Folken had deluded himself into believing that if he could get Hitomi to fall in love with him, then it would be different. At least if she was attracted to him, then it would be bearable for him to be with someone so raw and inexperienced. But, Hitomi said she was in love with Van – well wasn't that nice? For Van. Here Folken always sighed. The theory about Van having strong luck was definitely true. He did have all the luck.

Dilandau was getting up from his chair. "Then I'm going. I don't want them to wait too long for me. My son … I don't want him to wait." Dilandau was lurching to the door like he was out of control, but Folken knew he wasn't drunk. He was entitled to go a little insane when his pregnant girlfriend was kidnapped by his archenemy.

"Don't forget to bring The Dragon back with you, or at least someone who will make him come visit us," Folken reminded Dilandau.

"Keeping hostages worked last time, but do you think it will work again?" Dilandau asked, his voice scratched.

Folken balanced a long silver pen on the back of his hand, and answered smoothly, "I guess that depends who you get."

"Hitomi?" Dilandau questioned, his eyes looking redder and more vicious than ever.

"I'll leave that up to you," Folken said, turning away. He heard the door click shut after Dilandau left. The pen Folken had been playing with slid off his knuckles and rolled across the desk. When it fell on the floor, Folken didn't move to get it.

Folken would have to give Dilandau a chance and see if he could rein Van in. Folken doubted it, but he couldn't go himself. He might get into a fight with Van where they ended up using their powers against one other, and then it would be dangerous for him. If Folken used too much power and his wings broke through his back again – it would kill him. Van's blood or no – it would kill him.

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Author's Notes: Okay, I know this is around half or a third as long as one of my normal chapters, which is why it's an epilogue instead of a chapter. That's also why I updated early with the last chapter. I knew this wasn't long, so I didn't want to make you wait long for something this short. Oh, well - it's very revealing even if it is short. 

Love and kisses for everyone who has been reading and supporting me through 'Dragon's Moon' and 'Mystic Wings'. Big giant thank you to Kaytala for beta reading - she's really good at it and my typing just gets worse and worse. So, again thank you to everyone who reviews, posts on my forum, reads chapters more than once, and basically make me escatic about this story every day. THANK YOU!

So, on a different note - the opening chapter for book three 'Mark of a Goddess' will be coming out shortly. Here's the synopsis for it:

_Book I - Dragon's Moon. Book II - Mystic Wings. Book III - Mark of a Goddess. Van's back, but will Hitomi be able to keep him from doing something he will definitely regret? She wants to have a life with him that doesn't involve revenge. AU VH._

This one will be Action/Adventure/Romance instead of Suspense/Romance like 'Mystic Wings'. So, it will be more like 'Dragon's Moon' in that sense. There's a forum up for this epilogue and there is also one up for MoaG.


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